Department for Transport

Northern: Industrial Disputes

Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 15 May 2003 to Question 113237 on rail strikes, whether Arriva Northern has made an application in the last year to reimburse the company for revenues lost as a result of official industrial action.

Joseph Johnson: Arriva Rail North has made an application under Schedule 8.3 of the franchise agreement with regards to industrial action.

Northern: Industrial Disputes

Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 15 May 2003 to Question 113237 on rail strikes, whether he or his officials have had discussions with Arriva Northern in the last year on reimbursing Arriva Northern for revenues lost as a result of official industrial action.

Joseph Johnson: Ministers have not had such discussions with Arriva Northern within the last year, but there have been discussions between officials and Arriva Rail North in the last year on this subject.

Public Transport: North Cornwall

Scott Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of public transport links in North Cornwall.

Joseph Johnson: The Secretary of State has made no recent assessment of the adequacy of public transport links in North Cornwall. However we have made the following investments to improve public transport across the wider Cornwall area: New Hitachi Intercity Express Trains will start taking over from the existing High Speed Trains on the route between London and the South West this year; Protecting the line at Dawlish is a national priority of utmost importance and we are determined to find a permanent solution for this vital connection. £15 million of funding has been provided to Network Rail to take this forward and planning and development work is well under way;Train services between Plymouth and Penzance will increase in frequency to two per hour. The first of the fully modernised High Speed Trains that will operate on that route entered service in March;The London to Cornwall Sleeper trains are undergoing a thoroughgoing modernisation, with most vehicles now complete and in service;Penzance Depot has been expanded and upgraded with money from HS2 and Cornwall Council.  Over 800 responses were received to the Department’s consultation on the future of the Great Western franchise. We are currently considering those responses and will respond in due course.

Locomotives: Driverless Vehicles

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of the introduction of driverless rail vehicles.

Joseph Johnson: The Department recognises the potential benefits connected with driverless rail vehicles, but responsibility for deciding where and how to deploy them rests with the UK rail industry. The Department will continue to monitor developments in technology, including greater automation, and to encourage the industry to adopt them where these are safe, deliver benefits, and after consultation with relevant stakeholders.

Blue Badge Scheme

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department plans to publish the responses to its consultation on Blue Badge eligibility published on 21 January 2018.

Jesse Norman: The consultation attracted a significant number of responses which are being considered carefully. An announcement will be made as soon as possible.

Railways: Compensation

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much compensation was paid by each train operating company that operates a passenger charter or delay repay scheme in (a) 2015-16 and (b) 2016-17.

Joseph Johnson: 2015/16 and 2016/17 compensation figures have already been published and can be found on the gov.uk website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/train-operating-companies-passengers-charter-compensation/train-operating-companies-passengers-charter-compensation

Railways: Haywards Heath

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many trains were cancelled from Haywards Heath to London from 00.01 on 18 June to 00.01 on 23 June 2018.

Joseph Johnson: The Department does not collect cancellation information to this level of detail. I have asked Govia Thameslink Railway to provide my Hon Friend with this information.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Employment: Pregnancy

Carolyn Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps the Government is taking to tackle maternity discrimination.

Andrew Griffiths: The law is absolutely clear that pregnancy and maternity discrimination in the workplace is unlawful. Government is tackling pregnancy and maternity discrimination in several ways. Firstly, Government is working to increase awareness of individuals’ rights and employers’ obligations. We have made steady progress. - ACAS published updated guidance in November, so that women and employers understand their rights and obligations better. Government also continues to support the Equality & Human Rights Commission’s Working Forward campaign on pregnancy and maternity discrimination. - The MAT B1 form (the form which enables a pregnant woman to claim Statutory Maternity Pay from her employer or Maternity Allowance from Jobcentre Plus) has recently been updated to include a link to advice and guidance on employment rights for pregnant women and new mothers. - The Government’s response to the Taylor Review of modern working practices committed to update and consolidate the pregnancy and maternity discrimination pages on GOV.UK by summer 2018. Secondly, the Government has committed to review the legislation relating to redundancy protection and consider whether this is sufficient. This review is underway. Thirdly, in terms of monitoring and enforcement, Government continues to fund both the ACAS helpline and the Equality Advisory and Support Service, which provide free advice in this area. Government will also monitor others’ findings (such as the recent EHRC work poll on employer attitudes) for any signs that interventions are starting to have an impact or changes in employers’ practices.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Policy

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the main policy priority is for his Department for 2018; and if he will make a statement.

Richard Harrington: The Department’s priority is to build an economy that works for everyone, with great places across the UK for people to work and for businesses to invest, innovate and grow. To do this, we are delivering the Government’s modern Industrial Strategy, which sets out a long-term plan to boost the productivity and earning power of people throughout the UK. This ambition is all the more important as we leave the European Union, a move which allows – and requires – the government and the country to make long-term decisions about our economic future, and set out a positive and bold vision for the country’s future.

Insolvency: Misconduct

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will publish the number of licensed insolvency practitioners that have been charged with misconduct since the Financial Conduct Authority's report, RBS's treatment of SME customers referred to its Global Restructuring Group, published in September 2016.

Andrew Griffiths: Details of sanctions imposed against insolvency practitioners by their licensing bodies are published each year as part of The Insolvency Service’s ‘Annual Review of Insolvency Practitioner Regulation’. In addition, individual sanctions are published on the Insolvency Service’s website throughout each year. Seventy sanctions have been published since the start of 2016, 36 of those since the beginning of 2017 and 2 recent sanctions will be added to the website shortly.

Fire Prevention: Insulation

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will place in the Library the work commissioned by his Department on the removal and replacement processes for cladding systems.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 20 June 2018 to Question 152643, on Fire Prevention: Insulation, what the timetable is for the exploratory research and development to be completed.

Richard Harrington: The exploratory research and development project has been completed. The findings are currently being reviewed, and will be made available in due course.

Offshore Industry: Helicopters

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, further to the oral contribution of the Minister for Energy and Clean Growth of 19 April 2018, Official Report, column 228WH, what response he has received from the Civil Aviation Authority on the regulation of helicopter safety standards in the offshore oil and gas sector; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: Last week, the Department received reassurances from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) that additional safety measures have been introduced to the H225LP and AS332L2 models of Super Pumas. Although the European Aviation Safety Agency has cleared the helicopters to return to service, both the CAA and their Norwegian counterparts have decided to keep the operational restrictions place until the completion of the Norwegian inquiry at the earliest. I have asked BEIS officials to send a copy of the CAA’s letter to all members who were present at the Westminster Hall Debate on the 19th April 2018.

Offshore Industry: North Sea

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of future trends in the level of employment of UK-based staff in the North Sea oil and gas sector.

Claire Perry: The Government is committed to the long-term future of the oil and gas sector which supports over 300,000 jobs and has been one of our great industrial success stories over the past 50 years. Future employment levels are subject to a wide range of factors, not least the oil price, and we are supporting the sector on a number of fronts, as we recognise that a successful offshore industry will continue to generate and protect jobs. For example, in the 2015 and 2016 Budgets, the Government delivered a fiscal package of measures worth £2.3bn to encourage investment in the sector and support jobs, placing the UK Continental Shelf amongst the most competitive fiscal regimes in the world; and in July 2016, the Oil and Gas Workforce Plan was published to address both short and long-term issues in the sector by retaining world class skills and expertise through redeploying skilled workers to other infrastructure projects and matching employees with jobs that require a similar skill set.

Fire Prevention: Insulation

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 20 June 2018 to Question 152643, on fire prevention: insulation, if he will place in the Library the instructions used to commission the Manufacturing Technology Centre to look at the removal and replacement processes for cladding systems.

Richard Harrington: As set out in the answer I gave to the hon. Member on 20 June 2018 to Question 152643, this proposal was initiated following a proposal to InnovateUK, BEIS and the Department for Communities and Local Government, who agreed to this. No commissioning instructions were developed, as this work was supported as a matter of urgency.

Fire Prevention: Insulation

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 20 June 2018 to Question 152643, on fire prevention: insulation, which Department funds the exploratory research and development.

Richard Harrington: Funding for this project was provided by InnovateUK, an Executive Non-Departmental Public Body of the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy.

Geothermal Power

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many geothermal power schemes have been funded through the government's renewable heat incentive.

Claire Perry: To date, no geothermal heat installations have been accredited through the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme. However, the first preliminary application for a geothermal heat installation was submitted in April 2018.

UK Trade with EU

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect on (a) Blackburn and (b) other regional areas of the UK of a no deal scenario when the UK leaves the EU.

Andrew Griffiths: We are committed to getting the best possible deal for the United Kingdom - a deal that works for all parts of the UK, including the North West. We do not want or expect a no deal outcome. However, a responsible government should prepare for all potential outcomes, including the unlikely scenario in which no mutually satisfactory agreement can be reached. The Government is undertaking a wide range of continuing analysis and preparatory work, across a range of scenarios, looking at the implications of UK withdrawal from the EU. Ministers have a specific responsibility, which Parliament has endorsed, not to release information that would reveal our negotiating position and so the Government will not provide an ongoing commentary on internal analytical work. The Government has confirmed that when we bring forward the vote on the final deal, we will ensure that Parliament is presented with the appropriate analysis to make an informed decision.

Carbon Dioxide: Shortages

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assurances his Department has received from gas supply companies that (a) the CO2 shortage will be tackled as a priority and (b) steps are being taken to ensure that food supplies in the UK are not disrupted.

Andrew Griffiths: We are aware that an international carbon dioxide shortage has affected a number of industries across Europe, including the UK. We have been assured CO2 producers are working as fast as they can to get plants up and running again, with CO2 production set to start very shortly. BEIS Ministers have had discussions with producers and suppliers. BEIS and Defra officials are in contact with relevant companies and trade associations, including those within the food and drink sector and the main carbon dioxide suppliers, to identify any obstacles to the re-establishment of normal supplies. Defra is in regular contact with the food and drink industry by convening their long-established Food Chain Emergency Liaison Group and other interested stakeholders. All of these stakeholders have made an important contribution to our understanding of the impacts on the food and drink sector. Capacity to produce carbon dioxide reduces annually at this time as the ammonia plants that produce it as a by-product close for annual maintenance while the demand for their primary product – ammonia used for fertiliser – is lower. However, this year supplies have been reduced due to problems in restarting some plants on schedule and a number of outages at other plants both in the UK and internationally.

Post Offices: Minimum Wage

Patricia Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans he has to provide support postmasters whose average income is below the minimum wage.

Andrew Griffiths: Remuneration arrangements with operators of post office branches is a matter for Post Office Ltd. These operators are not employees of Post Office Ltd but generally provide services on behalf of Post Office Ltd as part of a wider retail offering, such as a convenience store or a newsagent. This allows the operator to generate income from all aspects of their business through the sharing of footfall and cross-selling to customers between the retail and post office offerings.

Manufacturing Industries: Regulation

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the risks to UK manufacturing of regulatory divergence from the EU.

Richard Harrington: The Government is undertaking a wide range of analysis for a series of different outcomes. We recognise it is vital to give governments, businesses and citizens on both sides the time they need to prepare for our new economic partnership. Businesses should only have to plan for one set of changes. To this end, the implementation period will give businesses and citizens certainty, and common rules will remain in place until the end of the period. This means that businesses will be able to trade on the same terms as now up until the end of 2020. As my rt. hon. Friend the Prime Minister said in her Mansion House speech, she wants the UK and EU to have “the broadest and deepest possible partnership – covering more sectors and co-operating more fully than any Free Trade Agreement anywhere in the world today”. The UK will forge a bold and comprehensive economic partnership with our neighbours in the EU; and reach out beyond our continent, to trade with nations across the globe. We are determined to ensure that the UK continues to be one of the most competitive locations in the world for advanced manufacturing.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Palestinians: Demonstrations

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in the Palestinian Authority on the actions of Palestinian security forces during the demonstrations in Ramallah on 13 June 2018; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: Our Consul General to Jerusalem raised our concerns over the actions of the Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces and police during the demonstration held in Ramallah on 13 June with the Palestinian Liberation Organisation and the PA on 21 June. He urged the need for an investigation to understand what happened, to learn the lessons, and to enable appropriate action in light of the investigation.

Laith Abu Zeyad

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in the Palestinian Authority on the detention and treatment of Amnesty International staff member Laith Abu Zeya by Palestinian Authority security forces; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: Whilst we have not raised the case of Laith Abu Zeyad, our Consul General to Jerusalem raised our concerns over the actions of the Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces and police during the demonstration held in Ramallah on 13 June with the Palestinian Liberation Organisation and the PA on 21 June. He urged the need for an investigation to understand what happened, to learn the lessons, and to enable appropriate action in light of the investigation.​

Ramadan Abedi

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2018 to Question 133856, on armed conflict: Libya, what communications the Government has had with Ramadan Abedi.

Alistair Burt: ​Foreign Office officials were in contact with Mr Ramadan Abedi during his detention in May 2017 to provide basic consular assistance. They have been in contact on consular matters since then.

Yemen: Military Intervention

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Government has made an assessment of whether UK-licensed military goods were used in the Saudi-led operation in Hodeidah port; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: ​The UK has licensed the export of a wide range of military items to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. These include combat aircraft and components as well as precision guided munitions that have been used by Saudi Arabia in Yemen. We do not have specific information on whether equipment licensed by the UK has been used in operations in Hodeidah. We will not licence the export of items where we assess that there is a clear risk that they might be used in the commission of a serious violation of international humanitarian law or international human rights law.

Occupied Territories

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant the Answer of 29 March 2018 to Question 133735 on Occupied Territories, for what reason the data is not being collected.

Alistair Burt: We are confident that our robust process for assessing export licence applications manages the risk that UK-supplied equipment might be used in a way that is inconsistent with the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria. That process includes a rigorous assessment of the risks of diversion. In addition, we judge that it would not be practical or effective to carry out verification visits to end users in country. We keep extant licences under review and will revoke a licence if we judge that the export of the items covered by the licence would no longer be consistent with the Consolidated Criteria. We do not generally collect information on whether items granted an export licence are exported, or how they are then used.

USA: Undocumented Migrants

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the representatives of the US administration on that country's zero tolerance policy on illegal immigration.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​As the Prime Minister said on 20 June, the reports and pictures we have seen in the past couple of days are deeply disturbing and wrong. We do not apply similar measures here and will never do so. Later on 20 June, President Trump signed an Executive Order aimed at ending the separation policy.

Syria: Military Intervention

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment the Government has made of (a) which Islamist groups were involved in Turkey’s intervention in Afrin and (b) the level of collaboration between those groups and the Turkish armed forces.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​The UK is not involved in the Turkish-led operation in Afrin and we cannot provide comprehensive information about it. We understand that a number of different Syrian armed groups were involved in the operation with Turkish support including air support and artillery strikes.

Iraq: Military Intervention

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment the Government has made of (a) Turkey’s military role in northern Iraq; and whether Turkish armed forces have used British military equipment in northern Iraq in 2018.

Sir Alan Duncan: We have been closely following Turkey's Operation Tigris Shield, announced in March in order to combat PKK fighters in the Turkey-Iraq border regions. The PKK remains a significant threat to Turkey and is an internationally proscribed terrorist organisation.UK arms exports are subject to export controls. We have no specific information concerning whether UK-licensed items are in use in Turkish military operations in northern Iraq, but all decisions in respect of the original licences have been taken based on the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria and according to the latest information available. We keep our approach to all countries under continual review.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Policy

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the main policy priority is for his Department for 2018; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office published an updated Single Departmental Plan on 23 May 2018. This set out the Department's main policy objectives and how it will achieve them. Single Departmental Plans will be revised annually to reflect new priorities or changes in responsibilities.

Noura Hussein

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 May 2018 to Question 143645 on Noura Hussein, whether the representations his Department has made to the government of Sudan included the possibility of a Presidential pardon.

Harriett Baldwin: Our Ambassador to Sudan raised our deep concern about Noura Hussein's case at a senior level with the Government of Sudan on 17 June, and made clear our strong opposition to the use of the death penalty, child marriage and forced marriage. I also conveyed our concerns in a call to the Sudanese Foreign Minister on 12 June, stressing the importance of a fair appeal to the sentence imposed by the courts. We will continue to raise the case at a high level with the Government of Sudan.

Noura Hussein

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will include private representations on the case of Noura Hussein Hammad in the agenda for the next UK-Sudan strategic dialogue meeting.

Harriett Baldwin: Our Ambassador to Sudan raised our deep concern about Noura Hussein's case at a senior level with the Government of Sudan on 17 June, and made clear our strong opposition to the use of the death penalty, child marriage and forced marriage. I also conveyed our concerns in a call to the Sudanese Foreign Minister on 12 June, stressing the importance of a fair appeal to the sentence imposed by the courts. We will continue to raise the case at a high level with the Government of Sudan.Sudan remains a Human Rights Priority Country for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and the UK-Sudan Strategic Dialogue provides an important platform to raise our human rights concerns with the Government

Noura Hussein

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will (a) raise the case of Noura Hussein Hammad in the Republic of the Sudan with the office of the EU High Representative on Foreign and Security Policy, and (b) support the representations made to Sudan through that office.

Harriett Baldwin: We are working closely with EU and other partners on Noura's case. On the 15 May we released a statement alongside other EU Heads of Mission to make clear our firm opposition to the use of the death penalty under any circumstances, and to recall the principle of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that marriage should be entered into only with the free and full consent of spouses.Our Ambassador to Sudan raised our deep concern about Noura Hussein's case at a senior level with the Government of Sudan on 17 June, and made clear our strong opposition to the use of the death penalty, child marriage and forced marriage. I also conveyed our concerns in a call to the Sudanese Foreign Minister on 12 June, stressing the importance of a fair appeal to the sentence imposed by the courts. We will continue to raise the case at a high level with the Government of Sudan.

Sudan: Sexual Offences

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the Government of the Republic of the Sudan on changes to that country's law on (a) reasonable self-defence against sexual violence as a legal defence in cases where a person has been killed, (b) prohibition of marriage below the age of 18 and (c) recognition of marital rape.

Harriett Baldwin: The British Ambassador to Sudan has raised the importance of reform of the law on forced marriage, and of laws that discriminate against women, at senior levels with the Government of Sudan, most recently in a meeting with Vice President Hassabo Mohammed Abdulrahman on 17 June. The UK continues to encourage Sudan to sign and ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), and to make clear our support for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights principle that marriage should be entered into only with the free and full consent of spouses.

Nigeria: Abduction

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the Cameroonian government on the abduction of ten Cameroonian pro-Independence activists in Nigeria on 6 January 2018.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK is aware of 47 Anglophone detainees who were arrested in Nigeria and extradited to Cameroon in January this year. During my visit to Cameroon from 13 to 15 February, I pressed Prime Minister Yang to allow access by an independent and reputable agency such as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) or National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to all the detainees. In his meeting with Cameroonian Prime Minister Yang in April, the Foreign Secretary pushed for the release of detainees. I also delivered the same message to Commonwealth Minister Mbayu when I met him here in London. We have also expressed our concerns through an EU statement at the June Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva and our High Commission in Yaoundé continues to lobby for humanitarian access to the detainees.

Nigeria: Abduction

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what information his Department holds on the welfare of the 10 Cameroonian pro-Independence activists abducted in Nigeria on 6 January 2018.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK is aware of 47 Anglophone detainees who were arrested in Nigeria and extradited to Cameroon in January this year. During my visit to Cameroon from 13 to 15 February, I pressed Prime Minister Yang to allow access by an independent and reputable agency such as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) or National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to all the detainees. In his meeting with Cameroonian Prime Minister Yang during CHOGM, the Foreign Secretary pushed for the release of detainees. I also delivered the same message to Commonwealth Minister Mbayu when I met him here in London. We have also expressed our concerns through an EU statement at the June Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva and our High Commission in Yaoundé continues to lobby for humanitarian access to the detainees.

Cameroon: Politics and Government

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the clashes between demonstrators and security forces in the Southern regions of Cameroon since secessionist groups declared the independence of the region on 1 October 2017.

Harriett Baldwin: The ongoing dispute and clashes in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon are deeply concerning. The Cameroonian authorities need to take urgent steps to de-escalate current tensions and to establish a meaningful process of dialogue to address the root causes. During my visit in February to Cameroon, I met with the Prime Minister and the Ministers of External Relations, Territorial Administration, and Defence where he discussed the ongoing tensions in Cameroon's Anglophone regions. The Foreign Secretary met the Cameroonian Prime Minister during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and pressed for urgent action to resolve the dispute and associated violence. I also delivered the same message to Commonwealth Minister Mbayu when I met him here in London.

Egypt: Journalism

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Egyptian government on allegations of abuse by Egyptian security forces against journalists in that country.

Alistair Burt: ​We are aware of reports about the recent arrests of journalists, activists and human rights defenders in Egypt, and we have raised this with the Egyptian Government, most recently in May. The UK wishes to see more political progress and better protection of human rights in Egypt, which is why Egypt is an Foreign and Commonwealth Office Human Rights Priority Country. Our concerns about restrictions on freedom of expression in Egypt have been raised by the Foreign Secretary who emphasised the importance of a free and open society with Egypt's President Sisi during his visit to Cairo in February 2017. Ministers consistently raise our human rights concerns with Egyptian interlocutors. We also raise our concerns in public, including at the UN Human Rights Council; in September 2017 our statement noted our concern about media freedom in Egypt.

Chechnya: Human Rights

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the authorities in Chechnya on (a) freedom of religion and (b) respect for human rights.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​Both the Foreign Secretary and I raised our concerns about the human rights situation in Russia, with an emphasis on Chechnya, during our respective visits to Moscow in December. The government has not had any direct discussions with the Chechen authorities.We provide financial and moral support to NGOs and civil society across Russia at a time when they are facing growing pressure. We currently provide funding to a number of NGOs working to counter violent extremism and promote human rights and the rule of law in North Caucasus. The Foreign Secretary received a briefing from these organisations as part of his visit to Moscow on 22 December.

Saudi Arabia: Driving

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the Saudi Arabian authorities on the restrictions on women drivers in that country.

Alistair Burt: The UK welcomes the end of the ban on women obtaning driving licences in Saudi Arabia from 24 June. We have discussed this issue regularly with the Saudi authorities along with other women's rights issues, recognising that women's rights in Saudi Arabia fall short of international standards. Primarily, we focus on removing legal and cultural barriers like the guardianship system.

Saudi Arabia: Military Aid

Stephen Gethins: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to his Written Statement of 23 May 2018, Official Report, HCWS716,  whether the Government's new agreement with Saudi Arabia includes providing information, advice and assistance for Saudi or Saudi-led coalition military operations in Yemen.

Alistair Burt: ​Her Majesty's Government is working with Saudi Arabia to mitigate the threat from missiles fired from Yemen across the border into Saudi Arabia.UK personnel are providing information, advice and assistance limited to this objective.For reasons of operational security further details of this support are not being provided.

Duke of Cambridge: Speeches

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what advice his Department plans to provide on Prince William's response to any questions on recent killings in Gaza which are raised during the five day visit starting on 24 June 2018 to Jordan, Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Alistair Burt: Holding answer received on 27 June 2018



The main purpose of Royal Visits is to strengthen diplomatic, economic and people-to-people relations between the UK and the countries and places visited. Members of the Royal Family undertaking official visits for the UK receive a range of factual briefings in the lead-up to the visits. It would not be appropriate to comment on the specific details of these briefings.

Gaza: Death

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Israeli counterpart on ensuring an independent element in the inquiry into the recent deaths at the Gaza border.

Alistair Burt: ​The UK has called directly on Israel to carry out a transparent inquiry into the Israeli Defence Forces’ conduct at the border fence and to demonstrate how this will achieve a sufficient level of independence. We have made clear that this investigation should include international members and that the findings of such an investigation should be made public. The Prime Minster stressed the need for Israel to carry out a transparent, independent inquiry into recent protests in Gaza when she met Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu in London on 6 June.

Israeli Settlements

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he plans to take to encourage the Israeli Government to freeze the building of illegal settlements in the West Bank.

Alistair Burt: ​The Foreign Secretary issued a statement on 1 June calling on Israel to reconsider its plans to construct over 3,000 settlement units in the West Bank. I raised our concerns about new settlement announcements with the Israeli authorities during my visit to Israel on 30-31 May.

Israel: Bedouin

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Israeli counterpart on the evacuation of the Bedouin village of Umm al Hiran in Israel.

Alistair Burt: We are closely following the debate around the issue of unresolved Bedouin land claims, unrecognised Bedouin villages in the Negev, and lack of basic services. The UK continues to encourage the Israeli authorities and Bedouin community to work together to find a solution that meets the needs and respects the rights of the people affected.

Italy: Ethnic Groups

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the Italian Government on concerns about its potential census of Roma people.

Sir Alan Duncan: The British Government is aware of reports of calls for a census of Roma people in Italy. The British Government opposes discrimination in all forms, as well as actions that might damage ethnic and community relations. The Rome people are one of the most disadvantaged minorities, and we support efforts at a European level to encourage Member States to take effective action to improve the situation of their Roma communities. We therefore urge all members of the international community to adhere to international law and human rights standards.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Visits Abroad

Christian Matheson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which countries he visited on 25 June 2018; and on what date the arrangements for those visits were confirmed.

Christian Matheson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the total cost to the public purse was of his visit to Afghanistan on 25 June 2018.

Mark Field: The Foreign Secretary visited Afghanistan on 25 June ahead of a National Security Council discussion. Following the recent ceasefires in Afghanistan, and with elections due later this year, this was a timely opportunity to take stock of progress and the UK’s supportive role in providing peace and stability to Afghanistan (full details can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/foreign-secretary-flies-into-kabul-to-support-signs-of-progress-in-afghanistan). The Foreign Secretary also visited the United Arab Emirates, meeting the Deputy Foreign Minister. The cost of the Foreign Secretary’s travel will be disclosed in the usual way and published as part of transparency data in accordance with Cabinet Office requirements. We do not discuss operational planning of any visits by the Foreign Secretary.

Afghanistan: Visits Abroad

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when his most recent visit to Afghanistan was confirmed.

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the cost was of his most recent visit to Afghanistan.

Mark Field: The Foreign Secretary visited Afghanistan on 25 June ahead of a National Security Council discussion. Following the recent ceasefires in Afghanistan, and with elections due later this year, this was a timely opportunity to take stock of progress and the UK’s supportive role in providing peace and stability to Afghanistan (full details can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/foreign-secretary-flies-into-kabul-to-support-signs-of-progress-in-afghanistan). The Foreign Secretary also visited the United Arab Emirates, meeting the Deputy Foreign Minister. The cost of the Foreign Secretary’s travel will be disclosed in the usual way and published as part of transparency data in accordance with Cabinet Office requirements. We do not discuss operational planning of any visits by the Foreign Secretary.

EU Foreign Affairs Council

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he withdrew from the European Union Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels on 25 June 2018.

Sir Alan Duncan: I attended the Foreign Affairs Council meeting on 25 June. This meeting took place in Luxembourg. I made a Written Ministerial Statement about the meeting on 21 June (HCWS 785).

USA: UN Human Rights Council

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Department is taking to encourage the US to rejoin the UN Human Rights Council.

Mark Field: The United States’ decision to withdraw from the Human Rights Council is regrettable. As the Foreign Secretary has said, Britain’s support for the Council remains steadfast. It is the best tool the international community has to address human rights violations and abuses and to advance many of our international goals. It is for the United States to decide when to seek election back onto the Council, but the UK is committed to working to strengthen the Council from within and will continue to set out the case for US engagement. We will also continue to work with the United States on a number of human rights issues outside the Council including at the UN General Assembly and Security Council. ​

Overseas Aid

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to set the strategic direction for the coordinated deployment of British Soft Power.

Mark Field: The National Security Capability Review 2018 recommended the creation of a cross-government soft power strategy. The FCO is leading the development of this strategy, working with Departments across Whitehall and seeking the views of a range of stakeholders outside government.

Afghanistan: Visits Abroad

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of his recent visit to Afghanistan.

Mark Field: The Foreign Secretary visited Afghanistan on 25 June ahead of a National Security Council discussion. Following the recent ceasefires in Afghanistan, and with elections due later this year, this was a timely opportunity to take stock of progress and the UK’s supportive role in providing peace and stability to Afghanistan (full details can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/foreign-secretary-flies-into-kabul-to-support-signs-of-progress-in-afghanistan). The Foreign Secretary also visited the United Arab Emirates, meeting the Deputy Foreign Minister. The cost of the Foreign Secretary’s travel will be disclosed in the usual way and published as part of transparency data in accordance with Cabinet Office requirements. We do not discuss operational planning of any visits by the Foreign Secretary.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Brexit

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, whether his Department plans to undertake or commission modelling of the effect of leaving the EU on the basis of its preferred scenario.

Mr Steve Baker: We want the broadest and deepest possible partnership – covering more sectors and co-operating more fully than any Free Trade Agreement anywhere in the world today. The Government is undertaking a wide range of continuing analysis and preparatory work, across a range of scenarios, looking at the implications of UK withdrawal from the EU. We have been clear the Government will not provide an ongoing commentary on internal analytical work that is being carried out within Government. The Government has confirmed that when we bring forward the vote on the final deal, we will ensure that Parliament is presented with the appropriate analysis to make an informed decision. Given that we are yet to conclude this negotiation, it would not be practical or appropriate to set out the details of exactly how the Government will analyse the final deal.

Furniture: Manufacturing Industries

Tracy Brabin: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, whether he has held any meetings with UK based bed manufacturers since the creation of his Department.

Mr Steve Baker: Ministers and officials from across Government continue to engage extensively across the economy, listening to business’ priorities and issues as they relate to our exiting the European Union. This includes regular engagement with the manufacturing sector across the country.As the Prime Minister has set out, we want the UK to have the greatest possible tariff- and barrier-free trade in goods and services with our European neighbours.

Department of Health and Social Care

In Vitro Fertilisation

Siobhain McDonagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many women have been administered (a) intra-lipids, (b) intravenous immunoglobulins and (c) other off-label medications from licensed IVF clinics in each year since 2014.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency have advised that this information is not collected centrally.

Social Services: Finance

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will allocate additional funding to meet the demand for social care in (a) Blackburn and (b) England ahead of the upcoming green paper on social care.

Caroline Dinenage: As a result of increased Government support, Blackburn and Darwen received an additional £7.3 million for adult social care in 2017/18. In total Blackburn and Darwen have access to up to £28.8 million additional funding between 2017/18 and 2019/20. Blackburn and Darwen’s adult social care budget for 2017/18 was £46.55 million. This is a 16.6% increase compared to the previous year. The Government has given councils in England access to up to £9.4 billion more dedicated funding for social care over three years. The action we have taken means that overall, councils are able to increase spending on adult social care in real terms for each of the three years from 2017/18. The Government will take decisions on funding for social care beyond 2019/20 as part of the forthcoming spending review.

NHS: Costs

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the cost to the public purse was of NHS treatment for people with (a) smoking-related, (b) alcohol-related and (c) obesity-related illnesses in the most recent year for which data are available.

Steve Brine: ‘Towards a smokefree generation: A Tobacco Control Plan for England 2017-2022’, published in July 2017, suggests that in 2014/15, smoking cost the National Health Service in England £2.5 billion. The figure quoted includes the cost of treating smokers in primary and secondary care, general practitioner visits, nurse visits, prescriptions, outpatient visits and hospital admissions. Data on NHS spending on treatment of alcohol related conditions is not collected centrally. However, the costs to the NHS in England associated with alcohol misuse are estimated at £3.5 billion each year. ‘The economic burden of ill health due to diet, physical inactivity, smoking, alcohol and obesity in the UK: an update to 2006-07 NHS costs’ estimated that overweight and obesity cost the NHS in the United Kingdom £5.1 billion per year. This figure was uplifted to £6.1 billion in 2014/15 to take account of inflation.

Social Services: Minimum Wage

Laura Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2018 to Question 132626, on Social Services: Minimum Wage, whether EU State Aid Rules allow the full provision of back-pay by the Government for sleep-in shifts.

Caroline Dinenage: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 26 March 2018 to Question 133443.

Healthy Start Scheme

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much money was spent from the public purse on the Healthy Start scheme in the UK in (a) 2016-2017 and (b) 2017-2018.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The spend for the Healthy Start scheme, which is made up of the Healthy Start scheme and the Nursery Milk scheme, was £112.6 million in 2016-2017. The figures for 2017-18 are not yet available.

Healthy Start Scheme

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether eligibility for the Healthy Start scheme for a family with children under four years of age receiving universal credit and on an earned income of less than £408 a month is linked to eligibility for (a) tax credits or (b) child benefit.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Healthy Start eligibility is for pregnant women (at least 10 weeks into pregnancy) and families with a child under four years old, if they are claiming any of the following benefits:- Income Support;- Income-based Job Seekers Allowance;- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance;- Child Tax Credit (with an annual family income of £16,190 or less); and- Universal Credit (with family take-home pay of less than £408 per month). All pregnant women aged under 18 are also eligible for Healthy Start, regardless of whether they receive any of the above benefits.

Drugs: Prices

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department's consultation, Proposed changes to the statutory scheme to control the cost of branded health service medicines, whether his Department plans to introduce fixed tariff prices for prescribed special medicinal products.

Steve Brine: The statutory scheme regulates the cost of branded medicines. It is not the vehicle for setting reimbursement prices for special medicinal products (also known as ‘specials’). In England since November 2011 reimbursement prices for the most commonly prescribed specials are listed in the Drug Tariff (i.e. ‘fixed tariff prices’). However, we recognise that there are issues with the reimbursement arrangements for specials which do not have a reimbursement price listed in the Drug Tariff. The powers in the Health Service Medical Supplies (Costs) Act 2017 enable the Government to reimburse for specials dispensed in primary care in different ways such as considering quotes of suppliers and not reimbursing pharmacies at all if, for example, they have been provided the medicine by a central service. We are developing proposals, which will be subject to consultation with relevant stakeholders.

Social Services

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the cost to the NHS of reductions in the provision of social care services.

Caroline Dinenage: No assessment has been made. The jointly published NHS England and NHS Improvement plans for 2018/19 set out that the National Health Service will continue to work closely with local government, supported by the additional £2 billion of funding for adult social care over three years. This is being spent on meeting adult social care needs generally, stabilising the social care market, and reducing pressure on the NHS, including delayed transfers of care.

Rare Diseases

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to revise the rare disease strategy ahead of the UK leaving the EU.

Steve Brine: With the aim of improving the lives of all those affected by a rare disease, the United Kingdom Government published the UK Strategy for Rare Diseases in 2013, a high-level framework containing 51 commitments which sets out a 7-year strategic vision (2013-2020). The Government is committed to implementing the Strategy’s commitments and has, in January 2018, published Implementation Plans setting out its actions for England. The UK Rare Disease Policy Board is the UK-wide body responsible for facilitating the co-ordination of policy development and meeting the commitments set out in the UK Strategy for Rare Diseases. The Strategy is kept under review to take account of new developments including the outcome of negotiations with the European Union.

Rare Diseases: Drugs

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of whether NICE's guidance on the drug Orkambi supports his Department's approach of ensuring that NICE appropriately funds new, targeted technologies for the treatment of rare diseases.

Steve Brine: Orkambi was appraised for the treatment of cystic fibrosis by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in July 2016, but was not recommended. While it was clinically effective, the benefits were not sufficient to justify its considerable cost. NICE’s guidance is scheduled for review in July 2019. NICE is the independent body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based guidance for the National Health Service on whether drugs and other treatments, including for rare diseases, represent an effective use of NHS resources. NICE’s methods and processes for the assessment of drugs have been carefully developed over time and are internationally respected. NICE continues to keep its procedures under periodic review to ensure that they remain effective.

Mental Health Services: Waiting Lists

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of trends in waiting times for accessing mental health services.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Government is committed to improving access to mental health services across England and ensuring that people get access to the right treatment, at the right time and in the right place. Performance against Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) waiting time standards consistently exceeds the national targets. In March 2018, 98.7% of those people completing treatment waited less than 18 weeks for their treatment to start in England against a target of 95% and 89.2% of people completing treatment waited less than six weeks against a target of 75%. The recovery target, which states that at least 50% of people who complete treatment should move to recovery, was exceeded in March 2018 with a 52.5% recovery rate. According to the latest data for April 2018, 74.4% of patients referred to Early Intervention in Psychosis services start treatment within two weeks (exceeding our current target of 50%). For quarter four of 2017/18, children and young people’s eating disorder data showed that 78.9% of patients started urgent treatment within one week and 79.9% of patients started routine treatment within four weeks. This is positive progress towards meeting the 95% target for both routine and urgent cases to start treatment within four weeks and one week respectively, by 2020/21. Further information on performance against national waiting times standards can be found in NHS England’s Five Year Forward View for Mental Health Dashboard. https://www.england.nhs.uk/mental-health/taskforce/imp/mh-dashboard/ Through the joint health and education Green Paper on children and young people’s mental Health, we have also committed to piloting a four week waiting time for access to specialist National Health Service children and young people’s mental health services.

Ibrutinib

Karen Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to fund patient access to Ibrutinib.

Steve Brine: NHS England has advised that, since January 2017, it has commissioned ibrutinib for relapsed / refractory chronic lymphocytic leukaemia and chronic lymphocytic leukaemia with 17p deletion or TP53 mutation. Prior to this, ibrutinib was funded via the Cancer Drugs Fund. NHS England is currently reviewing its treatment criteria for ibrutinib and is willing to receive, by the end of July 2018, any further evidence that patients and clinicians may wish to submit on this matter.

Plastic Surgery

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much the NHS has spent on corrective surgery performed on private cosmetic patients in each of the last five years.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the (a) range of and (b) most common types of botched procedures performed in the private cosmetic sector are which the NHS is currently correcting.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department holds information on NHS-incurred costs for corrective surgery performed as a result of negligent cosmetic surgery performed overseas.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Neither the Department nor its arm’s length bodies hold the information requested.

Plastic Surgery

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is planning to bring forward legislative proposals to require private sector cosmetic providers to hold insurance against company liquidation.

Jackie Doyle-Price: There are no plans to bring forward legislative proposals to require private sector cosmetic providers to hold insurance against company liquidation.

Breast Cancer: Screening

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent representations he has received on delays in arranging breast screening appointments in (a) central and (b) East London; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Brine: NHS England (London) and Public Health England London are aware that some women in Central and East London have had problems receiving their routine breast screening locally. Both continue to monitor providers while they improve performance and ensure eligible women are offered a timely appointment in line with national breast screening standards.

Drugs and Mental Health

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to tackle the co-morbidity of drug addiction and mental health.

Steve Brine: Commissioners and providers of services have a joint responsibility to work collaboratively to meet the needs of people with co-occurring conditions. Public Health England (PHE) has therefore developed guidance to support commissioning and provision of joined up services for people with a dual diagnosis of mental health and substance misuse problems. The guidance sets out principles for how services should work, including that each person should have access to a care co-ordinator to help ensure all their needs are addressed. The guidance is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/people-with-co-occurring-conditions-commission-and-provide-services PHE continues to support the ‘no wrong door’ approach when people present to services with co-occurring conditions. Commissioning guidance encourages services to respond collaboratively, effectively and flexibly offering compassionate and non-judgemental care centred around the persons needs which is accessible from every access point.

Radiotherapy

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of the proposed £20 billion to be allocated to the NHS by 2023 is planned to be allocated to radiotherapy services.

Stephen Barclay: The Prime Minister has announced a five-year funding agreement which will see the National Health Service budget grow by over £20 billion, in real terms, by 2023-24. No decision has yet been taken on the share of funds to be allocated to radiotherapy services under the multi-year financial settlement. It will be for the NHS, working with Government and consulting with patients and the public, to propose how to best invest the money within the funding envelope.

Lyme Disease: Medical Treatments

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to fund increased research into the treatment of Lyme disease.

Steve Brine: The Department commissioned four independent separate systematic reviews of all relevant literature on the diagnosis, treatment, transmission and prevention of Lyme disease. The four systematic reviews were completed and published in December 2017. We are investing over £1 billion a year in health research through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The usual practice of the NIHR is not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics: research proposals in all areas compete for the funding available. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including on Lyme disease. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.

Lyme Disease

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to establish an effective monitoring system to help determine the number of people in England with Lyme disease.

Steve Brine: The number of laboratory confirmed cases of Lyme disease in England is recorded by Public Health England (PHE) derived from PHE’s laboratory information database. At present, cases diagnosed clinically by general practitioners are not centrally recorded. Notification by practitioners is never complete, and a recent review by the Evidence for Policy and Practice Information and Co-ordinating Centre for the Department concluded that no surveillance system would give a complete picture, although laboratory data was the most robust data source to follow long term trends. Further information is available at the following link: https://eppi.ioe.ac.uk/cms/Publications/Systematicreviews/Prevalence,diagnosis,treatmentandpreventionofLymediseaseanevidencemapandfoursystematicreviews/tabid/3701/Default.aspx

Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the propriety of the Chief Executive of Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust taking part in the selection of that Trust’s Chair.

Stephen Barclay: As a Foundation Trust Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has the freedom, granted to them under successive Governments, to determine many of its own policies and procedures including those relating to the appointment of a new Chair. NHS Improvement guidance does however state that a foundation trust’s Chief Executive should not be permitted to vote on appointing the chair to whom he or she will be accountable. NHS Improvement is working on further strengthening provider governance.

Health Services and Social Services: Vacancies

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the current number of vacancies in the (a) health and (b) social care sectors.

Stephen Barclay: The Department does not hold the information requested. NHS Improvement has published its quarterly performance report of the National Health Service provider sector since Quarter 1 of 2017/18, this contains an estimate of the number of vacancies. The latest publication for Quarter 4 states there are 92,694 full time equivalent (FTE) vacancies in the NHS provider workforce as at March 2018. The latest NHS Improvement vacancy figures are available at the following link: www.improvement.nhs.uk/resources/quarterly-performance-nhs-provider-sector-quarter-4-201718/ Skills for Care state that there are approximately 90,000 vacancies in the social care sector and the latest figures can be found on the following link: www.skillsforcare.org.uk/NMDS-SC-intelligence/Workforce-intelligence/publications/The-state-of-the-adult-social-care-sector-and-workforce-in-England.aspx

Cervical Cancer: Screening

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies on tackling inequalities in access to cervical screening of the report by Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust entitled Computer says no, published in June 2018.

Steve Brine: All women should have timely and convenient access to cervical screening. Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services traditionally offer and undertake both routine and opportunistic cervical cancer screening. These services accommodate a high risk cohort of women, which include those who are unlikely to access the screening programme via their general practitioner (GP), and women who are not registered with a GP. In tackling inequalities in access to cervical screening within SRH, NHS England local teams have worked with local authorities and sexual health providers to negotiate the continuation of opportunistic cervical screening over the last five years, and have committed to review the commissioning of this before the end of summer. NHS England will work with Public Health England and an expert group of stakeholders to explore what more can be done in terms of providing national guidance and case studies, and the development of an inequalities toolkit for screening to maximise uptake of screening amongst vulnerable groups.

Urinary Tract Infections: Screening

Sir Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the efficacy of different methods of testing for lower urinary tract infections; and if he will make it his policy to encourage the establishment of clinics for lower urinary tract infections in each Health Authority.

Steve Brine: In England, it is the responsibility of National Health Service commissioners to make decisions on individual treatments and methods of testing for urinary tract infections on the basis of the available evidence, taking into account guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) where available. NICE guidance is always evidence based, adhering to the latest clinical thinking and research to determine the best treatment for patients. The majority of large teaching hospitals in England do have specialist urology centres embedded within which provide effective assessment and management advice for people with urinary symptoms. Such centres have the advantage of the ability to check for a range of conditions, and are best placed to ensure an accurate diagnosis so that appropriate treatment can be offered.

Department for International Development

Burma: Politics and Government

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation in western Burma.

Alistair Burt: The humanitarian situation in Rakhine State is the issue of greatest concern in western Burma. Access for humanitarian organisations in northern Rakhine, where the needs are considerable, remains severely restricted. We welcome the Burmese government’s recent agreement to work with the UN in Rakhine and we will continue to push for full and unfettered access for all humanitarian and development actors.

Department for International Development: Policy

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the main policy priority is for her Department for 2018; and if she will make a statement.

Harriett Baldwin: The Department for International Development (DFID) published an updated Single Departmental Plan on 23 May 2018. This set out the department’s main policy objectives and how it will achieve them. DFID’s Single Departmental Plan will be revised annually to reflect new priorities or changes in responsibilities.

Pacific Ocean Islands and Papua New Guinea: Fisheries

James Heappey: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what fishing industry related projects her Department has (a) supported  and (b) allocated funding to in (i) Federated States of Micronesia, (ii) Kiribati, (iii) Marshall Islands, (iv) Nauru, (v) Palau, (vi) Papua New Guinea, (vii) Solomon Islands and (viii) Tuvalu; and how much funding her Department allocated to each such project.

Alistair Burt: Since 2009, the Department for International Development has supported no fishing industry related projects in Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu. In 2016 the UK spent £5.75 million of bilateral aid the Pacific region. The UK publishes all the statistics on UK aid spend from 2009 – 2016 (Statistics on International Development, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/statistics-on-international-development-2017).

Overseas Aid: Fraud

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of trends in the level of fraud in the expenditure of Official Development Aid in the last five years.

Harriett Baldwin: The Department for International Development has zero tolerance to any incidents of fraud and corruption and has developed robust systems to identify and mitigate those risks, at all levels. The department retains information on all suspected and confirmed cases of fraud and corruption and this information is regularly reviewed to identify anomalies and trends. This insight is shared internally on a regular basis and used to drive a risk-based and proactive approach to fraud across the portfolio.

EU Aid: Fraud

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what representations her Department has made to the EU on fraud in relation to EU overseas development assistance in the last five years.

Harriett Baldwin: Following the 2016 Multilateral Development Review, it was found that EuropeAid has systems and policies in place to tackle fraud and corruption. Since its publication, DFID officials have met with the European Commission and OLAF to discuss best practice, with a focus on staff awareness of their responsibilities in identifying and raising fraud and corruption concerns.DFID’s dedicated specialist Counter Fraud Section (CFS) is focused on stamping out fraud before it occurs. CFS work in partnership with a number of International agencies including OLAF (European Anti-fraud Office), through an established information sharing agreement. This is used to share intelligence on activities that could impact on overseas development assistance.

Zimbabwe: Human Rights

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that businesses involved in any UK investment into Zimbabwe are conducting and publishing human rights due diligence in relation to their (a) operations and (b) supply chains and analysing the effect of their business on workers’ rights.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK Government is working closely with UK companies operating in Zimbabwe to ensure that they uphold the UN principles on Business and Human rights. The UK Government regularly meets with UK investors to get updates on their operations and reinforce the importance of compliance.

Zimbabwe: Agriculture

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government is taking (a) in its own aid work and (b) to support the Zimbabwean Government to institute agricultural strategies appropriate for small-holder farmers and larger commercial farmers which prioritise (i) environmentally sustainable, (ii) regenerative and (iii) climate resilient agriculture.

Harriett Baldwin: Through DFID, the UK government is supporting smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe through development programmes and policy engagement. This includes building the capacity of the most vulnerable rural communities to cope with and adapt to climate-related shocks in 18 rural districts and supporting smallholders to improve their productivity and access to markets and finance in 11 districts.

Zimbabwe: Human Rights

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support the Government is providing to the (a) Human Rights Commission, (b) National Peace and Reconciliation Commission and (c) citizen oversight support commissions to advance respect for human rights in Zimbabwe.

Harriett Baldwin: Over the five year period 2014 to 2019, DFID is providing approximately £24 million of support to civil society to increase transparency and accountability, promote and protect human rights and citizen engagement in Zimbabwe. This includes technical assistance to the Human Rights Commission and support to a number of human rights NGOs.

Zimbabwe: Economic Situation

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what (a) financial and (b) technical support the Government is providing to support the informal economy in Zimbabwe.

Harriett Baldwin: We are providing a range of support to the informal economy in Zimbabwe; this includes making the financial sector more inclusive of smaller operators; and finding new and innovative ways to provide smaller enterprises with access to credit.

Department for Education

Secure Accommodation

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the merits of expanding local authority secure accommodation.

Nadhim Zahawi: Local authorities are provided with £40 million of funding over the spending review period through a capital grants programme in order to improve facilities at secure children’s home and enable some homes to increase their capacity. We established and continue to fund the Secure Welfare Coordination Unit to help plan and coordinate placements, based on individual needs, and to look at capacity issues.We are building on the data gathered by the Unit and Sir Martin Narey’s recommendations on secure provision to consider options for central commissioning of secure placements. In addition, we will be offering funding to local and combined authorities to commission feasibility studies into opening new secure provision to increase available capacity. We have also established a Residential Care Leadership Board in order to drive forward system and practice change.

Careers and Enterprise Company

Sir Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has for the future of the Careers and Enterprise Company; and if he will make a statement.

Anne Milton: The Careers & Enterprise Company has made excellent progress to date. It is building an Enterprise Adviser Network of business volunteers to work with schools and distributing funding so that more careers and enterprise activities reach young people in most need of support. The company will have an important role delivering the government’s careers strategy, including: Working across all the Gatsby Benchmarks of good practice, instead of just those relating to employer engagement to test 20 Careers Hubs across England, backed by £5 million of government funding. Expanding its Enterprise Adviser Network so that all secondary schools and colleges have access to an Enterprise Adviser by the end of 2020. The network will help schools and colleges give every young person at least seven encounters with employers during their secondary education. Delivering a new £5 million Investment Fund to scale up careers and enterprise programmes for disadvantaged young people. Training for 500 careers leaders in secondary schools and colleges, backed by £4 million of government funding. More information about The Careers & Enterprise Company’s activities can be found on their website: https://www.careersandenterprise.co.uk/.

Nurseries: Closures

Tracy Brabin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the Government's childcare policies on the number of nurseries closing down.

Nadhim Zahawi: The most recent Ofsted statistics, published on 27 June, show that the number of providers of childcare on non-domestic premises (group providers) has remained stable over time, having decreased by just 2% since 31 August 2012. There was also a small increase in the number of childcare places that they offer. These statistics can be viewed on Ofsted’s website at this link: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted/about/statistics.We regularly monitor the effect of our early years and childcare policies on the childcare market. The take-up of our childcare entitlements is positive, with 94% of three and four year-olds benefiting from funded early education and 72% of eligible two year-olds taking up the 15 hours entitlement. Furthermore, since the roll-out of 30 hours’ free childcare, more than 340,000 children have benefited from a 30 hours place. This saves around £5,000 per year for parents who use the full 30 hours.

Apprentices

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect of his Department's reform of apprenticeship on progress on meeting the Government's target of three million new apprenticeships by the end of the 2017 Parliament.

Anne Milton: Our apprenticeship reforms will give employers and apprentices the skills they need to grow and progress in the long term. Our reforms are making apprenticeships higher quality, at all levels, with a minimum duration of one year and 20 per cent off-the job training, and with a proper end point assessment. The 20 per cent off the job training rule, the shift to higher quality standards with a longer average duration, and the drop off in use of frameworks, have already contributed to a 20 per cent rise in expected apprenticeship training hours over the past year. Nearly 37 per cent of starts are now on the new, employer-designed apprenticeship standards, compared to just 3 per cent in the same period last year. More information on the progress of our reforms can be found at the link below: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/707896/Progress_report_on_the_Apprenticeships_Reform_Programme_May_2018.pdf.

Apprentices: Taxation

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much and what proportion of the apprenticeship levy has been invested in apprenticeships in each region of the UK.

Anne Milton: Information on the apprenticeship levy collected by HM Treasury and invested in each region of the UK is not available in the format requested.The majority of levy-paying employers operate across multiple geographical areas which means we cannot reasonably attribute the levy collected and spent in individual locations within the UK.In England, these employers are free to spend their apprenticeship funding wherever they wish, in locations that best meet the skills needs of the business.Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will receive their fair share of the levy so the devolved administrations will receive £460 million (in 2019/20). As skills is a devolved matter it will be for the devolved administrations to decide how funds raised from the levy should be used in their administrations.We publish regular statistics on apprenticeships here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/apprenticeship-and-levy-statistics-june-2018.These reflect the way that the levy is collected and spent.

Apprentices: Assessments

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to ensure that apprentices enrolled and training on a Standard Appenticeship Course, and working towards their end-date have an end-point assessment organisation in place.

Anne Milton: All new apprenticeship standards will have an end point assessment. Apprentices cannot start until the relevant assessment plan has been approved and published. Apprentices will know what their end point assessment will involve before they start on a standard. Over 99 per cent of apprentices on programmes have an end point assessment organisation registered against the standard. However, there are a small number of standards with starts which have not yet confirmed the end point assessment organisation. We are tracking these starts so that we can confirm an end point assessment organisation for these standards at the earliest opportunity. The number of end point assessment organisations on the register and coverage of standards is increasing each month; and we are confident that we will have assessment organisations in place for all apprentices taking their end point assessment.

Education: Exports

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the value was to the economy of education exports in the most recent year for which information is available.

Mr Sam Gyimah: In February 2018, the government published “UK revenue from education related exports and transnational education activity in 2015” which estimated the value of total education exports and transnational education activity to be £19.3 billion in 2015.

Pre-school Education: Finance

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the level of Funded Early Learning support for early years providers.

Nadhim Zahawi: By 2019 to 2020, we will be spending around £6 billion on childcare support, which is a record amount. This includes spending approximately £1 billion extra a year on 30 hours of free childcare and to fund the increase in hourly rates that we introduced in April 2017.Our average funding rates are based on the department’s ‘Review of Childcare Costs’. This was described as “thorough and wide ranging” by the National Audit Office. The review looked at both current and future cost pressures. We recently commissioned new research to provide us with further robust and detailed data for the costs of providing childcare for children under five.The latest Ofsted data from March 2018 showed that the number of non-domestic providers has remained stable.

Construction Industry Training Board: Staff

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many (a) staff and (b) full-time equivalent staff are employed in (i) payroll and (ii) non-payroll back-office functions in the Construction Industry Training Board.

Anne Milton: This is a matter for the Construction Industry Training Board. I have asked the Chief Executive, Sarah Beale, to write to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Engineering Construction Industry Training Board: Staff

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many (a) staff and (b) full-time equivalent staff are employed in (i) payroll and (ii) non-payroll back-office functions in the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board.

Anne Milton: This is a matter for the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board. I have asked the Chief Executive, Chris Claydon, to write to the hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education: Staff

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many (a) staff and (b) full-time equivalent staff are employed in (i) payroll and (ii) non-payroll back-office functions in the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education.

Anne Milton: This is a matter for the Institute for Apprenticeships. I have asked the Chief Executive, Sir Gerry Berragan, to write to the hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Office for Students: Staff

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many (a) staff and (b) full-time equivalent staff are employed in (i) payroll and (ii) non-payroll back-office functions in the Office for Students.

Anne Milton: This is a matter for the Office for Students. I have asked the Chief Executive, Nicola Dandridge CBE to write to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Children: Health

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the report entitled Crumbling Futures, published by the Children's Society in March 2018, what plans the Government has to encourage more 16 and 17-year-olds to come forward with any mental or physical health concerns.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the report entitled Crumbling Futures, published by the Children's Society in March 2018, what infrastructure the Government has in place to support the needs of 16 and 17-year-olds with mental or physical health concerns.

Nadhim Zahawi: We are interested in the recommendations of the Children’s Society Crumbling Futures report and welcome the focus on this area.The government’s mandate to NHS England includes an explicit expectation that the NHS, working together with schools and children’s services will support and safeguard vulnerable children through a joined-up approach to addressing their emotional, mental and physical health needs.The Department of Health and Social Care is providing an additional £1.4 billion funding between 2015/16 and 2019/20 in order to transform mental health services for children and young people with the ambition for an additional 70,000 children and young people to access NHS specialist services a year by 2020/21.One of the ways the government will encourage take up of mental health services is through the new Mental Health Support Teams proposed in the Mental Health Green Paper, which will provide significant support to 16-18s in schools and colleges. The Department for Education will also test how the teams can support vulnerable 16-18s and others not in school or college such as those in apprenticeships and other work-based learning. Additionally, the Department of Health are setting up a new national strategic partnership with key stakeholders focused on improving the mental health of 16-25 year olds by encouraging more coordinated action, experimentation and robust evaluation.

Students: British Nationals Abroad

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether UK nationals resident in the EU who fall within the scope of the Withdrawal Agreement will be treated as home students for the purpose of  university fees and student loans at UK universities after December 2020.

Mr Sam Gyimah: There are currently specific provisions in the rules that provide access to student support for persons who hold settled status in the UK, and who have left England to exercise a right of residence elsewhere in the Economic European Area (EEA) or Switzerland. We have agreed with the EU that equal treatment principles will continue to apply for those covered by the Withdrawal Agreement. This means that UK nationals resident in the EU (and EU nationals resident in the UK) before the end of the implementation period on 31 December 2020 will be eligible for support on a similar basis to domestic students in the relevant member state. It will be for member states to decide how they will implement the citizens’ rights deal in accordance with the Withdrawal Agreement. Entitlement to student finance, including tuition fee loans and home fees status after 31 December 2020 for those outside the scope of the Withdrawal Agreement, is under consideration.

Ministry of Justice

Crime: Victims

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the consultation on victims of crime announced on 16 January 2017 will commence.

Edward Argar: Supporting victims of crime is a priority for the Government and we have made a commitment to publish a Victims Strategy this Summer.

Crime: Victims

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effect of leaving the EU on the (a) adherence to and (b) content of the Victims Code.

Edward Argar: The Code of Practice for Victims of Crime (Victims' Code) is issued by the Secretary of State for Justice under section 32 of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004. As such, the Code exists independently of EU laws and therefore leaving the EU will not affect its operability. Supporting victims of crime is a priority for the Government and we have made a commitment to publish a Victims Strategy this Summer. The strategy will consider how compliance with the entitlements in the Victims’ Code might be improved and better monitored, and how those responsible for delivery of entitlements might be better held to account.

Domestic Violence: Convictions

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted in each of the last 3 years of an offence against the person relating to separate incidents in a domestic setting involving (a) two people, (b) three people and (c) four people or more.

Lucy Frazer: It is not possible to identify this information from centrally held Ministry of Justice data. Details such as where offences took place or the number of people involved cannot be obtained without incurring disproportionate costs as individual court records would need to be manually searched.

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Holly Lynch: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) personal independence payments and (b) employment and support allowance appeals are heard on average each day at Tribunal in (i) Huddersfield, (ii) Bradford and (iii) Leeds; and how many people on average are added each day to a waiting list for an appeal hearing at each of those Tribunals.

Lucy Frazer: The information requested is not held centrally. The information is not available, because the SSCS Generic Appeals Processing System (GAPS) cannot calculate the average rate per day. Venues may not be used daily, and a daily average would therefore be statistically unreliable. Furthermore, the relevant computer records are not run on a daily basis.

Ministry of Justice: Policy

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the main policy priority is for his Department for 2018; and if he will make a statement.

Lucy Frazer: The Ministry of Justice published an updated Single Departmental Plan on 23 May 2018. This set out the department’s main policy objectives and how it will achieve them. Single Departmental Plans will be revised annually to reflect new priorities or changes in responsibilities.

Sentencing

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 21 May 2018 to Questions 143128, 143129, 143130, 143131, 143132, 143133 and 143134, on Re-offenders: Alternatives to Prison, what the sentence described as other in the attached Table was in each case.

Rory Stewart: A sentence listed as 'other' is any disposal other than immediate custody, a suspended sentence, a community sentence, an absolute or conditional discharge, or a fine. Pursuant to the Answer of 21 May 2018 to Questions 143128, 143129, 143130, 143131, 143132, 143133, and 143134, the nature of the most recent offence listed as ‘other’ in each such case, broken down by offence, can be viewed in the table.



Table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 14.34 KB)

Prisoners' Release

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many offences were committed by prisoners on temporary release in the last 12 months.

Rory Stewart: Evidence shows the vast majority of offenders released on temporary licence abide by their ROTL conditions, with the compliance rate standing at well over 99%. Non-compliance is dealt with robustly and the prisoner faces being returned to closed conditions and serving long additional periods in custody as a result. In 2016, the latest year for which the relevant data is available, there were 351,290 releases on temporary licence and in 17 instances there was a reported failure where the reason for the failure was alleged offending. ROTL is used to prepare prisoners for their eventual release from custody and helps with finding work and stable accommodation, and to build and maintain family ties, all of which helps reduce reoffending. All offenders must meet strict criteria and pass a full-risk assessment before being considered for Release on temporary licence (ROTL).

Prisoners

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the prison population in England and Wales was for the most recent available period; and how many of those prisoners were born in (a) England, (b) Wales and (c) elsewhere.

Rory Stewart: The table below contains the prison population broken down by nationality as at 31 March 2018 (the latest available data).All nationalities83,263British Nationals73,711Foreign Nationals9,318Nationality not recorded234  Nationality data are collected and published within the Offender Management Statistics Quarterly. A full breakdown of this data can be found in table 1.7 at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/702300/population-31-march-2018.odsThe Ministry of Justice (MoJ) does not identify Welsh and English prisoners as independent nationalities. UK nationals are only recorded as having a nationality of ‘British’. Information is collected on where someone is ordinarily resident but not on whether they self-identify as English, Welsh or British in their place of residence.All data shown are based on the prison population at 31 March 2018. The detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale recording system. While the figures shown have been checked as far as practicable, they should be regarded as approximate and not necessarily accurate to the last whole number shown in the tables. They are fit to be used for comparing the relative magnitude of components.The MoJ is undertaking a programme of large scale prison reform which includes modernising the prison estate, closing older prisons that are not fit for purpose and creating in their place high-quality, rehabilitative establishments.

Department for International Trade

Trade Agreements

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what the objectives of the Government's independent trade policy for the future are.

George Hollingbery: As set out in the Government’s White Paper, ‘Preparing for our future UK trade policy’, the overarching objective of the UK’s trade policy is enhanced economic prosperity for the UK, through the development and delivery of a UK trade policy that delivers benefits for business, workers and consumers across the whole of the UK. The Government will:• pursue economic prosperity for the UK and lead by example through our liberal economy and pursuit of free trade;• develop, support and enforce a fair and proportionate rules-based system for trade, domestically and internationally;• develop a trading framework which supports foreign and domestic policy, sustainability, security, environmental and development goals; and• develop a trade agenda that is inclusive and transparent.

Import Duties: USA

Sir Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential effectiveness of EU counter-measures to US steel and aluminium tariffs.

Dr Liam Fox: While we sympathise with US concerns regarding transparency and the overproduction of steel, we continue to argue that tariffs applied under section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act are not an appropriate solution for dealing with these issues. We will continue to seek a constructive, permanent resolution with the United States to avoid further escalation, which would only harm businesses, jobs and consumers in the United Kingdom and the United States.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Homelessness

Faisal Rashid: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the validity of the findings in the Crisis report, Everybody In: How to end homelessness in Great Britain.

Nigel Adams: I welcome Crisis's report and Government shares the broad ambition it sets out. That is why we have committed to halving rough sleeping by 2022 and ending it by 2027. As part of this we have established the Rough Sleeping Advisory Panel and a cross-Government Ministerial Taskforce to support the development and implementation of the Rough Sleeping Strategy. Crisis sit on the Advisory Panel and supported the work to put forward a number of recommendations for the Rough Sleeping Strategy.I will continue to consider the findings outlined within the report ahead of the publication of the Rough Sleeping Strategy. My Department will also continue to work with Crisis once the strategy has been published and remain committed to tackling both rough sleeping and broader issues of homelessness as highlighted in the report.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Policy

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the main policy priority is for his Department for 2018; and if he will make a statement.

Jake Berry: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published an updated Single Departmental Plan on 23 May 2018. This set out the department's main policy objectives and how it will achieve them. Single Departmental Plans will be revised annually to reflect new priorities or changes in responsibilities.

CCTV: Southwark

Ms Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much has been spend by the London Borough of Southwark on (a) installing and (b) maintaining CCTV cameras in each of the last seven years.

Rishi Sunak: Holding answer received on 26 June 2018



This Government is committed to supporting councils in tackling crime and anti social behaviour.Local government capital spend figures, by local authority, are published here:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-authority-capital-expenditure-receipts-and-financingBy-authority tables are published under headers ending ‘individual local authority data’ again the latest being 2016-17.Spend on CCTV is available on the ‘Community Safety (CCTV)’ line within the COR1 tables each financial year.All local government revenue spend figures, by authority are published here:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-authority-revenue-expenditure-and-financingDetailed by-authority tables are published under the headers suffixed ‘individual local authority data – outturn’ the latest being 2016-17.Spend on CCTV is available on RO Line 233 within the RO5 tables each financial year.

Housing: Greater London

Ms Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many rape complainants have been rehoused in (a) the constituency of Camberwell and Peckham, (b) the London Borough of Southwark, and (c) Greater London in each of the last seven years.

Nigel Adams: Holding answer received on 26 June 2018



We are committed to ensuring that victims get the support they need to cope with and, as far as possible, recover from the terrible and often life-changing effects of crime.We do not centrally hold the data for the number of rape complainants that have been rehoused in the constituencies of Camberwell and Peckham, the London Borough of Southwark, and within Greater London.Local areas are best placed to understand local needs and the Government has devolved power and responsibility to local authorities, in this case the Mayor of London, and Police and Crime Commissioners for meeting those needs accordingly. We have set out a clear blueprint for locally-driven action, including to tackle sexual violence, through our National Statement of Expectations on Violence Against Women and Girls, which is supported by a Commissioning Toolkit which provides detailed, practical advice to local commissioners. This was developed with voluntary, community sector and statutory stakeholders, and sets out for the first time what local areas need to do to ensure an effective response to meeting the needs of all victims of violence against women and girls.

Housing Revenue Accounts

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to release further details on the housing revenue account flexibility announced in Autumn Budget 2017.

James Brokenshire: I refer the Rt Hon Member to my Written Ministerial Statement entitled Social Housing made on 26 June 2018 (HCWS797).

Business Improvement Districts

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether there is a timescale for the publication of the outcome of an appeal in a Business Improvement Districts bid.

Jake Berry: Legislation does not specify a time limit within which an appeal against the establishment of a Business Improvement District must be decided. The Secretary of State will issue a decision as soon as possible, having taken account of all representations received from those with an interest in the appeal.

Members: Correspondence

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to respond to the letter of 30 May 2018 from the hon. Member for Greenwich and Woolwich on New Capital Quay, Royal Borough of Greenwich.

Dominic Raab: I responded to the letter from the Hon Member for Greenwich and Woolwich on 27 June 2018.

Homelessness: Young People

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what he is doing to tackle levels of youth homelessness.

Nigel Adams: This government remains clear that one person without a home is one too many and we are committed to preventing and reducing homelessness and rough sleeping.As well as allocating over £1.2 billion to tackle all forms of homelessness over the spending review period, the government has also taken forward a number of important actions to specifically prevent and reduce the levels of youth homelessness.The Homelessness Reduction Act, which came into force in April this year, bolsters the support offer for families, care leavers and 16-17 year olds by ensuring that there are more opportunities for local authorities to put in place bespoke interventions to either prevent homelessness from happening in the first place, or relieve them from a homelessness crisis where it does occur.Alongside legislative changes, we have also published revised guidance to make clear the respective duties of children’s services and housing services to secure or provide accommodation for 16 and 17 year old children who are homeless or in need of accommodation.In addition, the government’s rough sleeping strategy, which will set out how the government will meet its manifesto commitments of halving rough sleeping by 2022, and ending it by 2027, will include specific action around tackling youth homelessness. The strategy will be published by July this year.

Planning Authorities: Accountability

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department has taken to ensure local authority planning boards are accountable to local residents.

Dominic Raab: Planning board or committee members are usually local elected councillors and therefore accountable to the local electorate. They have to abide by the code of conduct each planning authority is required to adopt under Section 27 of the Localism Act 2011. The code of conduct must be consistent with the “Nolan” principles.

Ministry of Defence

Yemen: Military Intervention

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many allegations of violations of international humanitarian law in Yemen by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia his Department has received in the last 12 months.

Mark Lancaster: As at 25 June 2018, the total number of alleged instances of breaches or violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) in Yemen listed on the "Tracker" database maintained by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) is 356. Of these, 14 are duplicate entries, which means that some incidents will have been recorded on more than one occasion likely because of the incomplete nature of Non-Governmental Organisation and media reporting upon which the MOD relies to update the "Tracker". Dis-aggregating this information to the last 12 months would be misleading without the addition of sensitive contextual information, which I am withholding as its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice relations between the United Kingdom and other States.The MOD does not investigate allegations of IHL violations. The Saudi-led Coalition is best placed to do this, and does so through its Joint Incident Assessment Team.

AWACS

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Sentry aircraft are allocated to (a) Operation Shader, (b) NATO’s Enhanced Forward presence in the Baltic and (c) UK coastal patrols.

Mark Lancaster: No Sentry aircraft are currently allocated to Op SHADER. We continually prioritise Sentry aircraft against tasks from a number of operational theatres alongside what our allies and partners have planned.

Defence: Procurement

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of defence procurement contracts have been awarded by his Department to US companies in each of the last five years.

Guto Bebb: The Ministry of Defence routinely publishes statistics on organisations paid more than £5 million and the levels of expenditure against competitive and non-competitive contracts. This can be found at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/mod-trade-industry-and-contracts-2017A breakdown to show US-owned companies could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Army: Vacancies

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which Army trades do not have an adequate number of trained regulars to perform operational tasks without taking mitigating actions; what the shortfall is in each such trade as a proportion of the number required; and what the minimum enlistment age is for each such trade.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many and what proportion of soldiers who enlisted under the age of 18 were enlisted into pinch-point trades in each of the last five years.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average age of enlistment was for each soldier serving in a pinch-point trade.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Ministry of Defence does not publish the names or specific details of Operational Pinch Points (OPPs) as this information would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces. However, I can assure the hon. Member that the Army has enough people to perform its operational requirements that help keep Britain safe. The minimum enlistment age for Soldiers into all Army Capbadges is 16, and it may be of interest to the hon. Member that of the current seven Army (OPPs) only one can be enlisted into. Pinch points may be rank or qualification specific and information is not held in the format requested to allow a more detailed response. The minimum enlistment age for soldiers into the Army is 16. We do not hold information about enlistment into OPPs in the specific format requested. However, of the current seven Army OPPs only one can be directly enlisted into because pinch points can be rank or qualification specific and therefore it is not always possible to enlist directly into them.

AWACS

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to hold an industry day for potential bidders interested in his Department's programme to replace the RAF's current fleet of Boeing E-3D Sentry Airborne Warning and Control Systems aircraft.

Guto Bebb: The Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 recognised the need to invest in and sustain the RAF's Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) capability to at least 2035. As yet the procurement strategy has not been determined.

Department for Work and Pensions

Employment Support Allowance

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what additional (a) resources and (b) funding her Department has been allocated to process back-dated claims for employment support allowance.

Sarah Newton: The report published by the National Audit Office, published March 2018, clearly sets out what resources and funding we have allocated to this process. The relevant information can be found at paragraphs 2.17 and 2.19: https://www.nao.org.uk/report/investigation-into-errors-in-employment-and-support-allowance/

Personal Independence Payment

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will undertake a review of the assessment criteria for personal independence payments.

Sarah Newton: There are no current plans to review the Personal Independence Payment assessment criteria.

Support for Mortgage Interest

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average payment of Support for Mortgage Interest to an individual was in 2017-18.

Kit Malthouse: The Department has not yet collated statistics for the entirety of 2017/18 on payments for Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI); however, based on the first three quarters of that year, the Department estimates that the average payment of SMI per claim was around £28 per week.

Support for Mortgage Interest: Disability

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people with a disability were claiming Support for Mortgage Interest in 2017-18.

Kit Malthouse: Eligibility for Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) is not dependent on disability status and the Department does not hold administrative data on the disability status of claimants of SMI. The Department has developed specific processes to identify and provide additional support to vulnerable customers during the transition to SMI loans. If the customer has an Appointee on our records, we will write to this person to establish if the claimant is capable of undertaking the discussion and making an informed decision. A legally appointed Deputy is required to undertake a financial decision and the Department can appoint such a representative where appropriate. There is provision in the regulations to continue to make SMI benefit payments pending completion of the legal process to appoint a legal representative.

Support for Mortgage Interest: Lone Parents

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many single parents claimed Support for Mortgage Interest in 2017-18.

Kit Malthouse: Based on the Department’s administrative data, it is estimated that in 2017/18 there were, on average, around 13,000 single parents in receipt of Support for Mortgage Interest. Figure rounded to the nearest 1,000.

Personal Independence Payment: Patients

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Department of Work and Pensions, for what reasons personal independence payments are not payable for people receiving care in an NHS hospital for longer than 28 days.

Sarah Newton: Where someone is maintained free of charge while undergoing medical or other treatment as an in-patient in a hospital or similar institution funded by the NHS, payment of (but not entitlement to) Personal Independence Payment (PIP) ceases after 28 days. This is on the basis that the NHS is responsible for the the person’s disability-related extra costs and to pay PIP in addition would be a duplication of public funds intended for the same purpose. Once someone is discharged from hospital, payment of PIP recommences from the date of discharge.

Independent Case Examiner

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, from what acceptance date the Independent Case Examiner's Office is currently allocating complaints to an investigation case manager.

Kit Malthouse: The Independent Case Examiner’s Office is currently allocating complaints to investigation case managers that were accepted for examination between March and May 2017. The time it takes to allocate complaints for investigation has been impacted by the on-going Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) complaints campaign.

State Retirement Pensions: Females

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many complaints relating to women born in the 1950s who have been affected by changes in the state pension age have been through the full review process of the Independent Case Examiner's Office.

Kit Malthouse: As at 26 June 2018, the Independent Case Examiner had fully reviewed and concluded 123 investigations into complaints from women born in the 1950s who were affected by changes in the State Pension retirement age.

State Retirement Pensions: Females

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many complaints relating to women born in the 1950s who are affected by changes in state pension age are awaiting allocation to an investigation case manager at the Independent Case Examiner's Office.

Kit Malthouse: As at 26 June 2018, there were 2,035 complaints from women born in the 1950s who are affected by changes in State Pension age awaiting allocation to an investigation case manager.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has made a comparative assessment of levels of (a) benefit sanctions and (b) destitution; and if she will make a statement.

Alok Sharma: The Department has not made a direct comparative assessment. Sanctions are only used in a minority of cases, when people fail to meet their conditionality requirements without good reason.When a sanction is applied, hardship payments are available as a safeguard if a claimant demonstrates that they cannot meet their immediate and most essential needs, including accommodation, heating, food and hygiene, as a result of their sanction. Additionally, claimants who are sanctioned continue to receive passported benefits, such as Housing Benefits on legacy benefits, and any UC elements they are entitled to, such as the housing and children element.

Children: Day Care

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support her Department provides to universal credit claimants who start a job with upfront childcare costs.

Alok Sharma: DWP continues to make changes to improve the Universal Credit experience for claimants and ensure that up front childcare costs do not have a financial effect on Universal Credit households with a low income. For example, we have introduced measures to reduce the waiting time for the reimbursement of upfront childcare costs. Since February 2018, Universal Credit claimants have been able to upload digital copies of their childcare cost receipts or invoices through their online Universal Credit account. Improvements in Universal Credit IT have also meant that most claimants reporting their in-month childcare costs are not asked to provide further evidence and are paid automatically with their Universal Credit award. In addition, claimants with a firm job offer can claim Universal Credit Childcare costs up to one month prior to starting work to enable their children to settle into a new routine. We also offer extra support to enable parents to pay upfront childcare costs or deposits: for example, claimants may be eligible to receive an advance of their future Universal Credit entitlement, which is interest free. Work coaches work with our claimants to ensure that, where this is taken up, repayments are affordable and manageable.

Unemployment: Dudley

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of recent trends in the level of unemployment in Dudley.

Alok Sharma: The level of unemployment in Dudley, using the Office for National Statistics’ (ONS) Annual Population Survey (APS), was estimated to be 8,300 in the year to December 2017. The unemployment rate was 5.6%, in the year to December 2017, and is estimated to have fallen by almost half (46%) since the year ending December 2010. Data from the ONS Labour Force Survey shows that since the 2010 election the level and rate of unemployment has fallen in every region and country of the UK.

Unemployment: Dudley

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of the level of support available to unemployed people in Dudley.

Alok Sharma: In addition to national initiatives available such as the Work and Health Programme and the Enhanced Support Offer, there are currently 67 local partners available to support unemployed people in Dudley. These are in a variety of sectors and include educational, voluntary and charitable organisations. We also support employers with their redundancy programmes. To date in 2018, support has been provided to 10 employers and 432 people. Support for Universal Credit claimants in Dudley includes Universal Support, covering budgeting and digital skills, which is delivered by the local authority. This contracted provision is closely monitored and local partnership managers work with partners and providers to ensure the level of support available fulfils requirements. If training gaps are identified, additional training can be procured for customers either on an individual basis or for groups of customers with similar needs at a local level. Details of the support provision available and its usage are monitored and continuous customer feedback is gathered from our three Dudley borough sites: Dudley, Halesowen, and Stourbridge.

Unemployment: Dudley

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what funding her Department has made available to services which support unemployed people in Dudley.

Alok Sharma: Since February 2018, over £100,000 of flexible support funding has been used to support unemployed people in Dudley. Additional support can also be allocated to purchase training for customers either on an individual basis or for groups of customers with similar needs at a local level. Funding from national programmes such as the New Enterprise Allowance, Specialist Employability Support and the Work and Health Programme is also used to support the unemployed in Dudley.

Funerals: Grants

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people applied (a) successfully and (b) unsuccessfully to her Department for a grant towards the costs of a funeral in the most recent 12 months for which data are available.

Kit Malthouse: The most recent month of data available is May 2018. In the period June 2017- May 2018, there were 25,697 awards of Funeral Expenses Payments in Great Britain. This includes awards made after review, reconsideration or appeal following an initially unsuccessful application. In the period June 2017 – May 2018, there were 14,680 initially unsuccessful applications for Funeral Expenses Payments in Great Britain. The number of initially unsuccessful applications is not equal to number of people who unsuccessfully apply for a Funeral Expenses Payment, as individuals may make multiple applications in a given time period. Applications that were initially unsuccessful may have resulted in an award after review, reconsideration or appeal. As a result some applications may be counted in both of the above figures. Figures are drawn from the Social Fund Policy, Budget, and Management Information System. The figures do not include applications that were processed clerically and have not been entered on to the Social Fund Computer System.

Unemployed People: Voluntary Work

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what definition Jobcentre Plus uses for volunteering when it encourages jobseekers to take up volunteering roles.

Alok Sharma: A volunteer is defined as a person: 1. who is engaged in voluntary work for someone who is not a relative; and2. where the only payment that person receives or is due to be paid to thatperson is in respect of expenses they have reasonably incurred in connectionwith that work. Source: Advice for Decision Makers Guide (Chapter R2) - https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/687088/admr2.pdf

Universal Credit: Scotland

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what correspondence there been between the Scottish Government and her Department on split payments for universal credit claimants; and if she will publish that correspondence.

Alok Sharma: We continue to work closely with the Scottish Government on the transfer of welfare powers covered by the Scotland Act 2016, including split payments, on which we hope to see progress. As this is currently the subject of on-going policy development between DWP and the Scottish Government, the Department is not in a position to share correspondence.

Employment: Disability

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the disability employment gap.

Sarah Newton: We remain committed to improving outcomes for disabled people. The manifesto commitment to get one million more disabled people in work by 2027 gives us a clear, ambitious, and time bound goal. We set out our continued commitment to improving employment rates for disabled people and people with long-term health conditions in Improving Lives: the Future of Work, Health and Disability. We believe people should get the support they need whatever their health condition or disability, whether that’s from their employer, from the health system or from the welfare system. We have invested in our Personal Support Package, which includes £330 million of funding over four years with a range of new interventions and initiatives designed to provide support that is tailored to the individual needs of claimants. We have recruited 300 additional Disability Employment Advisers and we are introducing 200 new Community Partners, bringing specialist advice and support into the Jobcentre. We are supporting employers to help them recruit and retain disabled people and people with health conditions through Disability Confident, the Access to Work scheme, and specialist advisers in Jobcentres. Recognising the importance of enabling people to remain in work, we want to reform the Statutory Sick Pay system so that it more effectively supports returns to work, and we are exploring how to shape, fund and deliver transformational change to provide effective occupational health services that can support people in work.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Seas and Oceans: Environment Protection

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 May 2018 to Question 140661 on seas and oceans: for what reasons the Government abstained on the vote on motion 053 on increasing marine protected area coverage for effective marine biodiversity conservation at the 2016 Congress of the International Union for Conservation of Nature World Conservation.

David Rutley: The Congress is the governing body of the IUCN but its motions are advisory in nature and are not legally binding on any of its members. The globally agreed target, under both the Convention on Biological Diversity and under Sustainable Development Goal 14, for MPAs and other effective area based management tools is 10% by 2020. Negotiations on revision to this target will conclude under the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2020. The UK has in excess of 23% of its waters within MPAs, with further expansion planned.

Fly-tipping

Laura Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the effectiveness of local authorities in reducing incidents of fly-tipping; and if he will make a statement.

David Rutley: The Government is committed to tackling fly-tipping. We work closely with local authorities and the Local Government Association through the National Fly-tipping Prevention Group (NFTPG). Local authorities annually report to Defra about the number, type and cost of incidents and the enforcement actions taken.   It is the responsibility of local authorities to use the full range of enforcement powers available to them to tackle fly-tipping. We have recently strengthened these powers by introducing fixed penalty notices for small scale fly-tipping and enhancing the ability of local authorities to search and seize vehicles of suspected fly-tippers. The NFTPG has published guidance which sets out clearly the powers available to local authorities when tackling fly-tipping.   Earlier this year we consulted on proposals to introduce a new fixed penalty for householders who pass their waste to a fly-tipper. We also intend to provide updated guidance for householders about how to ensure their waste is disposed of correctly. Subject to Parliamentary approval, we will seek to implement the changes later this year. As two-thirds of fly-tipping contains household waste, these additional measures will give local authorities another tool to tackle fly-tipping.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the (a) number and (b) proportion of sites of special scientific interest that have had no condition assessments undertaken in the last six years; and if he will publish the names of those sites.

David Rutley: As of 20 June 2018 there were 4,126 sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs). 1,941 SSSIs (47%) had not had an assessment by Natural England within the past six years. Information on assessments of individual SSSIs, including the dates and details of the last assessments, is published by Natural England online at https://designatedsites.naturalengland.org.uk/.   Natural England is exploring ways to increase monitoring of SSSIs, including through the use of new technologies and greater partnership involvement.

Packaging: Waste Disposal

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make it his policy to replace the packaging recovery note scheme with a fee-based system that takes account of the end of life costs of plastic materials.

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to ensure that extended producer responsibility covers 100 per cent of the collection and disposal costs of packaging.

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the amount of plastic waste exported from the UK.

David Rutley: We are developing reforms to the packaging producer responsibility scheme. We are looking at all aspects of the regime, including mechanisms to incentivise better design, encourage the use of recycled material and make better use of materials at the end of life. This could include making producers pay more if their products are not easily recyclable and them paying less if their products are made from recycled materials.   The proposed models for reform will embody principles of extended producer responsibility, including packaging producers funding the end of life costs of their packaging products, as well as the collection and disposal costs of packaging waste.   We want to create a vibrant market for recycled materials in the UK, including plastic. Our forthcoming Resources and Waste Strategy will set out how we will deliver these ambitions.

Air Pollution

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to accord priority to the UK meeting World Health Organisation air quality guidelines during negotiations on the UK leaving the EU.

David Rutley: The World Health Organisation guidelines do not form part of EU agreed targets for emissions or concentration reductions, and therefore will not be included in negotiations on the UK leaving the EU. The UK has met all legally binding EU limits for particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) since 2009.   We are proposing to do more than the EU requires. In our Clean Air Strategy, we have set out a new goal to halve the number of people living where concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) are above the World Health Organisation guideline level of 10 micrograms per cubic metre by 2025. We are the first major developed economy to set goals based on WHO guidelines.

Food: Waste

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has a strategy to prevent large quantities of food waste; and if he will make a statement.

David Rutley: Preventing food waste is environmentally and financially beneficial for households and businesses. The Government is taking a multi-pronged approach to prevent food waste involving householders and food businesses across the food chain. The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), supported by Defra, launched the Courtauld Commitment 2025 in March 2016. The Courtauld Commitment 2025 is an ambitious ten-year voluntary agreement that brings together organisations across the food system to identify priorities, develop solutions and implement changes at scale, both within signatory organisations and by spreading new best practice across the UK. The Commitment goes further than ever before with ambitious industry targets to be reached by 2025. One of these is a 20% per capita reduction in food and drink waste arising in the UK. The new phase will focus on providing a more targeted approach, focused on the most wasted food products and the people who generate the most waste. Government will continue to play a central role in food waste reduction and the Resources and Waste Strategy will set out further policies in this area later in the year.

Agriculture: Wales

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many meetings he has had with the Welsh Government on the (a) design and (b) implementation of agricultural funding after 2022; and what was discussed at those meetings.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what representations he has received from the Welsh Government on the (a) design and (b) implementation of funding for the agricultural sector after 2022.

George Eustice: Ministers and officials are in regular contact with the Devolved Administrations. The Secretary of State last met with Ministers from the Welsh and Scottish governments and senior officials from Northern Ireland on 14 May 2018. They discussed domestic preparedness, legislative planning, frameworks and future funding.

Agriculture: Finance

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish the minutes of the meetings he has held with the (a) National Farmers' Union Cymru and (b) Farmers' Union of Wales on the (i) design and (ii) implementation of funding schemes for agriculture after the UK leaves the EU.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many meetings he has had with stakeholders in the agricultural sector on the (a) design and (b) implementation of agricultural funding after 2022.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish the minutes of the meetings he has had with stakeholders in the agricultural sector on the (a) design and (b) implementation of agricultural funding after 2022.

George Eustice: Ministers and officials are in regular contact with stakeholders and discuss a wide range of issues, including future funding. Details of meetings are published on the GOV.UK website, consistent with the Government’s policy on transparency and accountability.

Horticulture: Seasonal Workers

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of the closure of the seasonal agricultural workers scheme on the economic output of the horticultural industry in (a) the UK and (b) Scotland since 2014.

George Eustice: The Government keeps its position on seasonal workers under close review. Defra has been monitoring the economic output of the horticultural industry and there has been an increase in output in real terms between 2014 and 2017 (latest available data) for both the UK and Scotland. According to Agriculture in the United Kingdom 2017[1] output of potatoes, vegetables and horticultural products in the UK saw an increase of £531 million in real terms between 2014 and 2017. Output of fruit in the UK saw an increase of £110 million between 2014 and 2017 in real terms. Output of the horticultural industry in Scotland increased between 2014 and 2017 by £66million in nominal terms. These figures have been taken from the Scottish Government website. [2][3] [1]https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/712317/AUK-2017-31may18.pdf[2]https://beta.gov.scot/publications/total-income-farming-estimates-scotland-2014-2016/documents/00516835.xlsx[3]https://beta.gov.scot/publications/total-income-farming-estimates-fo-scotland-2015-2017/documents/00530805.xls

Horses: Databases

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans for semi-wild ponies living in areas that are derogated under the Equine Identification Regulations, and which are micro-chipped and identified by an identification document under article 7 of Commission Regulation 504/2008 or article 13 of Commission Implementing Regulation 2015/262, to be included in the central equine database as eligible for slaughter for human consumption; and when he plans to commence that process.

George Eustice: The Central Equine Database will include details of all equines with UK passports. Work to include those semi-wild ponies who are subsequently issued with UK passports will commence shortly.

Microplastics: Pollution

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of the ban on microbeads on trends in the level of plastic pollution.

David Rutley: Microbeads, like other microplastics, do not biodegrade and therefore accumulate in the environment and can cause serious harm to marine life. There are also suitable, less harmful alternatives.   While some countries have opted to ban only those plastic particles added for exfoliating and cleansing purposes, our ban covers all microplastic particles in rinse-off personal care products. It is one of the toughest bans in the world.   As Commonwealth Chair-in-Office for the next two years, we are driving forward ambitious action to reduce plastic pollution in our oceans. We have announced the ground-breaking Commonwealth Clean Oceans Alliance (CCOA) with our partner Vanuatu, and are calling on Commonwealth countries to pledge action to tackle marine plastic pollution. One of the ways this could be done is by committing to ban the sale and manufacture of microbeads in rinse-off cosmetic and personal care products by 2021. We will be sharing the technical expertise we have gained on implementing a microbead ban with members of the CCOA.

Food: Republic of Ireland

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Irish Environment Minister on the movement of food products after the UK leaves the EU.

George Eustice: We place huge value on maintaining the UK’s unique arrangements with Ireland and the friendly cooperative relationship we have built in recent years. We want the best deal for the food, fishery and farming sectors, including making sure we have a continuing range of high quality, affordable food products. Defra Ministers have met their counterparts in the Irish Government on a number of occasions to discuss the future EU-UK relationship.

Countryside Stewardship Scheme

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what reason the Rural Payments Agency failed to make full payments to applicants of the Countryside Stewardship Scheme with an agreement starting on 1 January 2017.

George Eustice: Natural England (NE), rather than the Rural Payments Agency (RPA), currently administer the Countryside Stewardship Scheme. That activity, together with that for Environmental Stewardship, will transfer to the RPA later this year. Around 83% of 2017 Countryside Stewardship claimants have so far received either a full or advance payment. Bridging payments are now being made to the remaining 17% of agreement holders. Performance has fallen well short of expectations on the delivery of 2017 payments. Defra, alongside its delivery bodies, is committed to resolving this as quickly as possible.

Countryside Stewardship Scheme

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the cost was to his Department of issuing bridging payments to applicants of the Countryside Stewardship Scheme who have not received full payments on their 1 January 2017 applications.

George Eustice: A bridging payment is an advance funded by the UK Exchequer in advance of the full year payment. Customers will receive 75% of the current estimated value of their Countryside Stewardship 2017 claim. When the balance payment is made, the total amount paid is subject to the usual EU co-funding arrangements and is reimbursed from the EU budget; there is therefore no additional cost to the UK Exchequer budget.

Countryside Stewardship Scheme

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many farmers have indicated they will not continue as participants in the Countryside Stewardship Scheme beyond their current agreement in the last 12 months.

George Eustice: That information is not currently available. Those farmers and land managers who have joined Countryside Stewardship since its start in 2016 will have several years of their five year agreements still to run. Agreement holders will clearly make decisions about joining any new scheme towards the end of their current five year agreement.

Countryside Stewardship Scheme

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what reason farmers in the (a) Entry Level and (b) Higher Level Stewardship Scheme are excluded from bridging payments in Countryside Stewardship applications.

George Eustice: The systems and processes for Environmental Stewardship (ES) and Countryside Stewardship are different and bridging payments would add complexity to the administration of ES claims. The quickest and safest way to get as many payments to the remaining customers who are waiting for ES advances is to continue to make those payments through the normal processes. Natural England has now paid over 82% of customers who are due their 2017 advance payments and has brought in more staff to help pay the remainder as soon as possible.

Countryside Stewardship Scheme

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will create a rollover option for those farmers whose Entry Level Stewardship and Higher Level Stewardship Schemes will finish soon.

George Eustice: The Government is currently considering the merits of extending Higher Level Stewardship agreements from 2019 onwards. All Entry Level Stewardship agreements will have already expired by this date. Farmers and land managers whose Entry Level Stewardship agreements expire at the end of 2018 will be able to apply for the simplified Countryside Stewardship Wildlife offers or for the Mid-Tier.

Countryside Stewardship Scheme

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many 2017 Countryside Stewardship claimants have received their full payment.

George Eustice: 1,311 2017 Countryside Stewardship claimants have now been paid in full.

Whisky: Scotland

Douglas Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that geographical indications protection in the EU for Scotch whisky is maintained after the UK leaves the EU.

George Eustice: Using powers under the EU (Withdrawal) Bill, we will create UK geographical indication (GI) schemes for wines, aromatised wines, spirits, and agricultural products and foodstuffs. This will provide UK protection for UK GIs - including Scotch Whisky - when we leave the EU and ensure that the UK fulfils its WTO TRIPS obligations. Negotiations on GIs with the EU are continuing and our aim is that all current UK GIs will continue to be protected by the EU’s GI schemes after we leave the EU.

Food: Waste

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the Government’s policy is on the provision of fiscal incentives for the redistribution of surplus food for human consumption.

David Rutley: Retailers and manufacturers can already get tax relief on food they donate. Companies can get tax relief on trading stock that is produced but not sold. This includes food donated to charities - the cost of producing stock which is donated is deducted from their profits before tax is calculated.   The issue of food waste will continue to be a priority for the UK. The Government recently announced the creation of a new £500,000 Food Waste Reduction Fund to support projects that help increase redistribution in communities.

Home Office

Avon and Somerset Constabulary

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the letter she received from the Chief Constable of Avon and Somerset Police dated 18 September 2017, what resources she plans to provide to prevent that force reaching breaking point.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Government understands that police demand is changing and becoming increasingly complex. That is why, after speaking to all forces in England and Wales, we have provided a comprehensive funding settlement which will increase total investment in the police system by over £460m in 2018/19, including £280m of additional income from Council Tax going directly to Police and Crime Commissioners to spend locally.In Avon and Somerset the PCC welcomed the settlement and set out plans to recruit 200 new police officers in 2018/19 and a similar number in following years.

Slavery

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 10 May 2018 to Question 140986 on Slavery, when the planned alignment of subsistence rates for victims of trafficking with those for asylum seekers will take place; what the subsistence rates will be following that alignment for victims of modern slavery who are supported by the National Referral Mechanism living in a safe house (a) with food provided and (b) where they purchase their own food; and how many such people (i) have applied for asylum and (ii) are receiving outreach support.

Victoria Atkins: We have not yet announced a date for the alignment of subsistence rates and we will set this out in due course, when we have finalised the specific details around the implementation. We are working closely with stakeholders to ensure that this happens as smoothly as possible. The overall amount of money available for supporting victims of modern slavery will not fall, but by making these changes more money is being made available to treble the period of “move on” support, which will happen at the same time, and will help people leaving victim support with their transition to other arrangements.When considering the level of these rates, the essential needs of potential victims were assessed to be comparable to the needs of asylum seekers. This is why the tested and established methodology that has been developed to measure the level of subsistence for asylum seekers will be adopted to measure the level of subsistence for potential victims of modern slavery. The rate is reassessed annually, and in 2018 was increased to £37.75. Where it has been identified that victims of slavery have needs above those of asylum seekers or have additional entitlements under the Council of Europe Convention Against Trafficking in Human Beings, these needs are met within the existing Adult Victims of Modern Slavery Care Contract. The methodology includes an allowance for individuals to purchase their food, and this will be taken into consideration when considering the level of subsistence for potential victims who live in catered accommodation, to ensure consistency throughout support.  Victims will continue to receive dedicated and expert support, which is tailored to their unique needs as victims of modern slavery. This includes access to legal aid, counselling, NHS medical and dental services. This will ensure there is a consistent approach for all individuals receiving similar government support. It is also essential that we target support to confirmed victims, at the point they need it most.We are working closely with the Salvation Army and the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner to ensure that the implementation of this change is as smooth as possible.

Cannabis: Medical Treatments

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the number of staff his Department will require to process applications for medicinal cannabis; what estimate he has made of the number of such applications that will be made; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Nick Hurd: As I announced on 18 June, the Government is establishing an expert panel of clinicians to advise Ministers on any applications to prescribe cannabis-based medicines. This is intended to ensure that advice to Ministers on licensing in these cases is clinically led, based firmly on medical evidence and as swift as possible. The Chief Medical Officers across the UK have already been actively working together on the panel, and the expert panel will start considering applications within a week. Further details, including who can apply to the panel and what information will be available to guide applicants will be confirmed in due courseThe total number of staff required to process applications is yet to be confirmed.

Rifles

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the evidential basis is for the proposed ban on .50 calibre rifles.

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of a ban on .50 calibre rifles on the use of firearms in violent crime.

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many recorded instances of violent crime or robbery have involved a .50 calibre rifle.

Victoria Atkins: The Government introduced an Offensive Weapons Bill on 20 June which includes proposals to prohibit high energy rifles with a kinetic energy of more than 13,600 joules. This prohibition would include some 0.50 calibre rifles.Concerns have been raised by UK Law Enforcement about the risks that high muzzle energy rifles might pose to public safety if they were to get into the hands of criminals or terrorists. Given the potential risk to public safety from these types of rifles the Government is taking action to address these risks.The Home Office holds information on the number of offences involving a firearm recorded by the police in England and Wales, but does not hold information on the calibre of firearm used in these offences.

Knives: Sales

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how his Department plans to prevent the sale and purchase of machetes and other dangerous knives.

Victoria Atkins: It is already an offence under Section 141 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 to manufacture, import, sell and supply offensive weapons. The list of offensive weapons is below:https://www.gov.uk/buying-carrying-knivesIn addition, it is an offence under Section 141(A) of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 to sell articles with blade or point to a person under 18. On 20 June we introduced an Offensive Weapons Bill which includes measures which will stop knives being sent to residential addresses after they have been bought online and will make it an offence to possess certain weapons in private.

Domestic Violence

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the consultation on transforming the response to domestic abuse, which closed on 31 May 2018, what the timetable is for the strategy for transforming the response to domestic abuse to be published.

Victoria Atkins: We received over 3,200 responses to the consultation. The responses are currently being analysed and we intend to publish a Government response as well as a draft Bill later this session.

Domestic Violence: Reoffenders

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what (a) protection and (b) advice is given to victims of domestic abuse in cases where the perpetrator is a repeat offender.

Victoria Atkins: In March 2014 the Government rolled out the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS) and Domestic Violence Protection Orders across England and Wales. The DVDS enables the police to disclose to the public information about previous violent offending by a new or existing partner where this may help protect them from further violent offending. The latest figures show 3,410 disclosures have been made under DVDS. Our recent domestic abuse consultation sought views on what more can be done to provide support to victims and tackle repeat perpetrators. The responses are currently being analysed and we intend to publish a Government response as well as a draft Bill later this session.

Home Office: Policy

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the main policy priority is for his Department for 2018; and if he will make a statement.

Victoria Atkins: The priority of the Home Department continues to be to keep citizens safe and the country secure.

Immigration: Windrush Generation

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment she has made of the potential long-term trauma and detrimental effects on mental health caused to people affected by the Windrush scandal; and what steps the Government is taking to provide counselling, talking therapies and ongoing support to people affected and to their families.

Caroline Nokes: Pursuant to the reply to Question 137167 given to the hon. Member for Liverpool, Wavertree on 02 May, the Government is clear that where the Windrush generation have suffered loss, they will be compensated.The first stage was to launch a Call for Evidence, that closed on 8 June. The Government will publish a further public consultation on the design and shape of the scheme, as soon as the time has been taken to analyse the responses to the Call for Evidence and use the information gathered to inform design and implementation considerations.In the meanwhile we will continue to work with and support affected individuals through the operation of the Windrush Taskforce.

Offensive Weapons

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the timetable is for the publication of the consultation on offensive and dangerous weapons.

Victoria Atkins: The Government published its consultation for proposals for new legislative measures on offensive and dangerous weapons on 14 October 2017 and the consultation closed on 9 December. The consultation received 10,712 responses.My Right Honourable Friend, the Home Secretary, made a Written Ministerial Statement to the House on 20 June (Official Report HCWS780) announcing the publication of a summary of the responses that the consultation received. Copies of the summary are available in the House Library and on the Gov.uk website at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/offensive-and-dangerous-weapons-new-legislation.

Police: Training

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of police officers received mental health training in each of the last five years in (a) England and (b) Kent.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office does not centrally hold the information requested.

Organised Crime: Drugs

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much money from the public purse will be allocated for the establishment of the National County lines Co-ordination Centre.

Victoria Atkins: The new National County Lines Co-ordination Centre, which was announced as part of the Serious Violence Strategy on 9 April will receive £3.6 million of funding from the Home Office over the next two years.The Co-ordination Centre is expected to be fully operational later this year.

Essex Police: Finance

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what changes he is considering to the police funding formula to enable more resources from central government to be made available to Essex Police.

Mr Nick Hurd: We have made clear that the issue of the funding formula will be looked at again at the next Spending Review. This provides police leaders with the financial certainty that they need to plan for 2019/20Before making decisions on the 2018/19 police funding settlement, I spoke to every police force in England and Wales to understand how demands on them were changing. This year, police funding is increasing by £460m including a £280m increase in funding for police forces from precept.The Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex used the flexibility to increase precept and his direct resource funding is increasing by £8.8m this year to £275.9 million. He has set out plans to use the increase in funding to support local policing, including recruiting additional frontline police officers.

Domestic Violence

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the timetable is for his Department to respond to it's consultation on the draft Domestic Violence and Abuse Bill; and what the timetable is for further steps to be taken in relation to that Bill.

Victoria Atkins: On 8 March we launched a 12 week public consultation on proposals for a landmark domestic abuse Bill and a supporting package of practical action to transform the response to domestic abuse. The consultation closed on 31 May. Over 3,200 responses to the consultation were received. The responses to the consultation are being considered and a draft Bill will be published later this session.

Drugs

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans he has to publish an implementation plan for the 2017 Drug Strategy.

Victoria Atkins: We have established a Drug Strategy Board which includes representation from Government departments and wider partners that are critical to successful delivery of the Strategy, including those in education, health, criminal justice, housing and employment. The Board is chaired by the Home Secretary and its purpose is to oversee and drive implementation of the commitments in the 2017 Drug Strategy. The Board has met twice since the Drug Strategy was published.

Immigration: Appeals

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what is the evidential basis for the 13 June 2018 statement of the Immigration Minister on Immigration Rules: Paragraph 322(5), column 420WH, that no applicants have been successful at judicial review.

Caroline Nokes: The statement was based on the findings available at that time from a manual trawl of individual case records. The trawl is being carried out as part of the current review of Tier 1 (General) migrants who have been refused under paragraph 322(5) of the Immigration Rules. This work is ongoing. We will report our findings to the Home Affairs Select Committee once the review is complete.

Migrant Workers: Doctors

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many overseas doctors with a job offer from the NHS in Blackburn had their application for a work visa rejected due to the cap on Tier 2 visas in each of the last five years.

Caroline Nokes: The available information on applications and outcomes (i.e. grants, refusals, withdrawn and lapsed cases) of entry clearance visas in the ‘Tier 2 & pre-PBS equivalent’ category are published quarterly in ‘Immigration Statistics’, Visas data tables volume 1, table vi_01_q, latest edition at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-year-ending-march-2018/list-of-tables#visas.Neither a breakdown by profession, or applications and outcomes by region of employment, is available in the published entry clearance visas data.

Immigration

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU without withdrawal agreement on (a) EU nationals in the UK and (b) UK nationals in the EU.

Caroline Nokes: The Government does not want or expect a no deal outcome. As the Prime Minister set out in her speech in Florence, we have a responsibility to make this change work smoothly and sensibly and we are confident that we can find a way forward that makes a success of EU exit for all of our peopleWe have made significant progress on citizens’ rights and other issues since negotiations began last year. The draft Withdrawal Agreement of 19 March 2018 includes agreed legal text on citizens’ rights. The UK Government and the European Commission have consistently stated that providing certainty for citizens is a priority and we believe it would be very unlikely for the deal on citizens’ rights agreed early on to be reopened. Furthermore, the Prime Minister has been clear on this point, including in her open letter to EU citizens on 19 October 2017: “EU citizens who have made their lives in the UK have made a huge contribution to our country. And we want them and their families to stay. I couldn’t be clearer: EU citizens living lawfully in the UK today will be able to stay.”

Extradition: Burma

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons his Department refused to extradite to Myanmar the main suspect involved in the murder of Gary Ferguson from Bangor, County Down; when that decision not to extradite was made; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Nokes: As a matter of long-standing policy and practice, the UK will neither confirm nor deny that an extradition request has been made or received until such time as an arrest has been made in relation to that request. The UK does not have extradition relations with Burma. Whilst we are able to consider requests from countries without a treaty, to be successful, any such request would have to meet the requirements in the Extradition Act 2003, including in respect of the protection of human rights.

Wales Office

Airbus SAS: Staff

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what discussions and meetings he has had with Airbus on their plans for their UK workforce after the UK leaves the EU.

Alun Cairns: I have regular discussions with key stakeholders including Airbus whom I have met in the last week. I also hold regular engagement events and roundtables with stakeholders throughout Wales to hear their views on how we make Brexit work for Wales. Airbus are a regular invitee to these events.

Railways: Wales

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what plans the UK Government has to ensure that the current cross-border rail franchises complement the Welsh Government’s South Wales metro franchise.

Alun Cairns: The Welsh Government has been able to develop its proposals for a South Wales Metro as a direct result of the UK Government delivering on a key commitment to devolve franchising powers to procure the new Wales & Borders franchise. We will continue to work with the Welsh Government to deliver on our joint ambitions to improve connectivity, cut journey times and create transport infrastructure in Wales that is fit for the future.

Scotland Office

Scotland Office: Policy

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what the main policy priority is for his Department for 2018; and if he will make a statement.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office published an updated Single Departmental Plan on 23 May 2018. This set out the department’s main policy objectives and how it will achieve them. Single Departmental Plans will be revised annually to reflect new priorities or changes in responsibilities.

Cabinet Office

Cabinet Office: Procurement

Philip Davies: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many contractors currently employed by his Department are paid £1,000 or more per day.

Oliver Dowden: The Cabinet Office utilises contingent labour to supply specialist skills and capability not readily available within the Civil Service. 13 contractors currently engaged by the Cabinet Office receive £1000 or more per day. 13 contractors currently engaged by the Cabinet Office receive £1000 or more per day. Out of these, nine are deployed to work on departmental transformation projects in other government departments; three have been engaged for 1-2 months; and one has been engaged for 14 months. Additional information about the numbers and costs of contingent labour working in the Cabinet Office (including temporary staff) is published monthly and 2017/18 statistics are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-workforce-management-data-2017-to-2018.

Civil Nuclear Constabulary: Pensions

Jamie Stone: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Government’s plans to move Civil Nuclear Constabulary officers onto the Alpha Pensions Scheme from April 2019.

Oliver Dowden: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 27 June 2018.The correct answer should have been:

The Government has carried out extensive reforms of public service pension schemes to ensure that they are fair and sustainable, including the introduction of new pension schemes for the main public sector workforces in 2015. As part of these reforms the Government plans to move Civil Nuclear Constabulary officers into the Alpha Pension Scheme in due course. Officials are continuing to engage on this issue.

Oliver Dowden: The Government has carried out extensive reforms of public service pension schemes to ensure that they are fair and sustainable, including the introduction of new pension schemes for the main public sector workforces in 2015. As part of these reforms the Government plans to move Civil Nuclear Constabulary officers into the Alpha Pension Scheme in due course. Officials are continuing to engage on this issue.

Conflict, Stability and Security Fund

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the (a) level of funding and (b) projects the Government has provided to each country through the Conflict Stability and Security Fund in 2017-18.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much funding the Government has allocated through the  Conflict, Stability and Security Fund to states classified as countries of concern/priority in relation to human rights.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of aid and assistance projects funded through the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund in 2017-18 received human rights risk assessments using the Government’s Overseas Security and Justice Assistance Guidance.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many projects funded through the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund in 2017-18 were escalated to Ministers for approval after an Overseas Security and Justice Assistance Guidance assessment concluded that they posed potential human rights risks.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many times Ministers did not proceed with assistance projects proposed for Conflict, Stability and Security Fund funding in 2017-18 as a result of human rights risks identified through the Overseas Security and Justice Assistance Guidance process.

Mr David Lidington: Further details of where the Conflict Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) operates and information on our programmes will be published in the CSSF Annual Report on .gov.uk, due to be released next month. The report will also detail department, regional and thematic spend for financial year 17/18. The Government’s Overseas Security and Justice Assistance (OSJA) guidance is designed to ensure that our assistance meets the UK’s human rights obligations and values and our policy is to apply it to all relevant programming. OSJA assessments are part of the wider risk management arrangements in place for CSSF-funded projects. OSJAs are live documents and are regularly updated. The OSJA guidance directs staff as to when Ministers would need to approve programming. 177 FY 2017/18 CSSF projects are registered as having completed an OSJA. The Government will provide further information on the implementation of the updated OSJA guidance in the FCO’s next Annual Human Rights Report. This will include an estimate of the number of OSJA assessments carried out during the previous financial year and a quantitative analysis of their geographical use. It will also summarise steps taken to implement the OSJA guidance across Government.

Arms Length Bodies

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the document, The Approvals Process fortheCreationofNewArm’s-length Bodies what steps he is taking to ensure that Arms-length Bodies including (a) CMS and (b) UKVI, are adequately (i) resourced, (i) operating effectively, and (iii) performance managed to deal with hon Member’s casework in a timely manner.

Chloe Smith: Individual sponsor departments are ultimately responsible for the resourcing and performance management of their arm's length bodies (ALBs). All ALBs are subject to a tailored review or equivalent at least once in the lifetime of a Parliament. The Cabinet Office's tailored review guidance sets out the principles for government departments to use when reviewing ALBs. These principles aim to ensure ALBs remain fit for purpose, well governed and properly accountable for what they do. The Child Maintenance Service and UK Visas and Immigration are operational units of the Department for Work and Pensions and the Home Office respectively and so are not ALBs. The Cabinet Office classification guidance sets out what is classified as an ALB (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/classification-of-public-bodies-information-and-guidance).

Government Departments: Edinburgh

Deidre Brock: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which Government departments he plans will have staff at HMG New Waverley.

Oliver Dowden: We will have a range of government departments based at HMG New Waverley. HMRC has been commissioned to deliver this building, as part of Phase One of the Government Hubs Programme. HMRC has confirmed it will base its Edinburgh Regional Centre in this building. This will be the UK Government’s cross-departmental flagship Hub in Scotland, which will function as the Scottish base of several government bodies, including the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland, the Office of the Advocate General, the Office for Statistics Regulation, the Information Commissioner’s Office, the Government Actuary’s Department and HM Treasury.

Government Departments: Contracts

Scott Mann: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to enable small firms to bid for Government contracts.

Oliver Dowden: Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, and this Government is committed to supporting them in securing public sector contracts. In April I announced a number of measures to help achieve this, including proposals on excluding suppliers who do not pay their subcontractors on time. We have already streamlined our procurement processes to assist small businesses, and we continue to focus on breaking down the barriers that might deter SMEs. We are committed to working with SMEs and our aspiration remains to spend 33% with them by the end of 2022.

Treasury

Company Cars: Taxation

Mark Pawsey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the company car tax rate on consumer demand for electric vehicles.

Robert Jenrick: Together with the wider support the government provides, the company car tax system aims to encourage the uptake and manufacture of ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs) by providing an incentive for motorists to choose zero-emission and other low CO2 emitting models. In 2017, sales of ULEVs were 1.8% of all new cars, and the UK was the second largest market for ULEVs in the EU.

Air Pollution

Mark Pawsey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the joint report of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Environmental Audit, Health and Social Care, and Transport Committees entitled Improving Air Quality, published on 15 March 2018, HC 433, what steps the Government has taken in response to the recommendation in that report to more closely align fiscal incentives with policy objectives on air quality.

Robert Jenrick: As confirmed in the Government response to the joint report of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Environmental Audit, Health and Social Care, and Transport Committees, the Government is committed to tackling climate change and air pollution. HMT sees tax and spending policy as playing an important role in achieving this, alongside other approaches such as regulation. The full government response to this report has been published here: https://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/environment-food-and-rural-affairs-committee/news-parliament-2017/joint-air-quality-response-publication-17-19/

Company Cars: Taxation

Mark Pawsey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment HM Treasury has made of the effect of the new Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure emissions standard and the use of correlated New European Drive Cycle values on Company Car Tax bands.

Robert Jenrick: At Autumn Budget 2017, the government announced that it would legislate, in a future Finance Bill, for the Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) to be introduced from April 2020. Officials are working with industry to determine the effect of the move to WLTP and the equivalent New European Driving Cycle values.

Company Cars: Taxation

Mark Pawsey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to announce the rates of company car tax which will apply from April 2021.

Mark Pawsey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will bring forward the introduction of lower company car tax thresholds for ultra low emission vehicles.

Robert Jenrick: From 2020/21, the government will be introducing eleven new company car tax bands for ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs). These changes were announced at Autumn Statement 2016 to provide certainty of the future tax liability for company car employers and employees. The government aims to announce the company car tax rates three years in advance of implementation.

Children: Day Care

Emma Little Pengelly: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the average payment is from tax-free childcare accounts to families where parents are higher rate tax payers since those accounts were established.

Emma Little Pengelly: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the average payment is from tax-free childcare accounts to families where parents are basic rate tax payers since those accounts were established.

Emma Little Pengelly: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of tax-free childcare accounts have received the maximum top-up of £2,000 since those accounts were established.

Emma Little Pengelly: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of tax-free childcare accounts are used by households of self-employed parents.

Elizabeth Truss: The data to answer questions 155901 and 155902 is not readily available and could only be provided at a disproportionate cost. The rollout of Tax-Free Childcare began in April 2017 to a small number of parents. Only a limited number of accounts have been open more than one year so accurate and robust data on the annual value of top-up paid to parents will not be available until early 2019, one year after full rollout of TFC. For question 155904 I refer the honourable member to the answer I gave on 4 December 2017 to the honourable member for Batley and Spen (116593).

Treasury: Policy

Philip Davies: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the main policy priority is for his Department for 2018; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Jenrick: HMT published an updated Single Departmental Plan on 23 May 2018. This set out the department’s main policy objectives and how it will achieve them. Single Departmental Plans will be revised annually to reflect new priorities or changes in responsibilities.

Bank Services: Misconduct

John McDonnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish the (a) individuals and (b) organisations that have been charged with misconduct since the publication of the report, Banks' Lending Practices: Treatment of Businesses in distress by Lawrence Tomlinson in November 2013.

John McDonnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many (a) individuals and (b) organisations have been charged with misconduct since the publication in September 2016 of the Financial Conduct Authority's report, RBS's treatment of SME customers referred to its Global Restructuring Group.

John Glen: This is a matter for the operationally independent Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FCA continues to conduct an ongoing investigation into Royal Bank of Scotland’s Global Restructuring Group, focusing on whether there is any basis for enforcement action. The details of FCA enforcement actions are published on its website.

LIBOR: Fraud

John McDonnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many (a) individuals and (b) organisations have been charged with rigging LIBOR since 2010; and what the outcome was of those charges.

John McDonnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many (a) individuals and (b) organisations have been charged with rigging EURIBOR since 2010; and what the outcome was of those charges.

John Glen: The Serious Fraud Office began an investigation into the manipulation of interbank lending rates in 2012. In relation to EURIBOR, 11 individuals have been charged, five of whom are currently at trial. One defendant has pleaded guilty to the charges. There are currently European Arrest Warrants issued in respect of the remaining five suspects. In relation to LIBOR, 13 individuals have had criminal proceedings brought against them. Four trials have concluded, which includes a retrial. These trials have resulted in five convictions and eight acquittals. No organisation has been charged as part of the SFO investigations, but the FCA have fined seven banks a total of over £757m for LIBOR and EURIBOR related misconduct. There have also been enforcement proceedings in other jurisdictions.

Bank Services: Fines

John McDonnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish the (a) fines and (b) penalties levied on banks authorised to operate in the UK since 2010.

John Glen: The details of enforcement actions taken by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), including fines levied on banks, are published on their websites.

Halifax Bank of Scotland: Fraud

John McDonnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to publish the full Turnbull report on alleged frauds at HBOS.

John McDonnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when (a) he and (b) officials in his Department were made aware of the draft Turnbull Report on alleged frauds at HBOS.

John McDonnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with regulatory bodies on the contents of the Turnbull Report on alleged frauds at HBOS .

John Glen: This is a matter for the operationally independent Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). This report was provided to the FCA and the police at the time, in 2014. The FCA is currently investigating the extent and nature of the knowledge of the discovery of misconduct within HBOS Impaired Assets office in Reading and HBOS’ communications with the regulator after the initial discovery of the misconduct.

Motor Vehicles: Taxation

Ben Bradley: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the cost of (a) fuel duty and (b) road tax on the affordability of motoring.

Robert Jenrick: To support British households and businesses, at Autumn Budget 2017, the government froze fuel duty for the eighth successive year. Since public finances are based on the assumption that fuel duty will increase with RPI at every Budget, any increase below this represents a cost to the Exchequer. Successive freezes since 2011 have saved the average driver £620 compared to what it would have been with RPI increases. Since 2011, the announced freezes to fuel duty have meant the Exchequer has not collected around £46 billion in revenues through to 2018-19. For the purposes of comparison, this is around twice as much as we spend on all NHS nurses and doctors each year.

Corporation Tax

Kate Hollern: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of the change to corporation tax on the public purse.

Mel Stride: Since 2010, the headline corporation tax rate has been cut from 28 to 19 percent. Cutting corporation tax allows companies to invest in expanding their business, boost wages, create jobs and lower prices for consumers. Despite the cuts, onshore corporation tax receipts have increased by around 50%, from £36.2bn in 2010-11 to £53.6bn in 2016-17.

Government Departments: Contracts

Stella Creasy: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans (a) he, (b) the Permanent Secretary at HM Treasury and (c) Ministers of his Department have to meet representatives of (i) Beatty, (ii) Barclays, (iii) Dalmore Capital, (iv) Equitix, (v) Innisfree, (vi) Interserve, (vii) Semperian and (viii) Veolia in 2018.

Robert Jenrick: We publish details of all Ministerial meetings with businesses once they have taken place on the following website: (https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel) We publish details of Permanent Secretary meetings with businesses once they have taken place on the following website: (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications?departments%5B%5D=hm-treasury&publication_type=transparency-data)

Government Departments: Contracts

Stella Creasy: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether (a) he, (b) the Permanent Secretary in his Department and or (c) Ministers of his Department have met representatives of (i) Beatty, (ii) Barclays, (iii) Dalmore Capital, (iv) Equitix, (v) Innisfree, (vi) Interserve, (vii) Semperian and (viii) Veolia in 2018.

Robert Jenrick: All Ministerial meetings with businesses are published on the following website: (https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel). The Permanent Secretary’s meetings with business are published here: (https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/711225/PERMANENT_SECRETARIES_MEETINGS__Jan_Mar_2018.csv/preview).

Financial Services: Misleading Advertising

Hilary Benn: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what powers the Financial Conduct Authority has to investigate complaints of misleading advertising by payment services companies.

Hilary Benn: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what penalties the Financial Conduct Authority can impose on payment services companies that have been found to have engaged in misleading advertising.

John Glen: The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA’s) powers to investigate payment service providers and impose penalties are set out in the Enforcement Guide part of the FCA Handbook. In particular, Chapter 19.10 of the Enforcement Guide describes how the FCA have powers under the Enterprise Act to enforce breaches of consumer protection law, which includes breaches of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (which itself covers misleading advertising). As described in Chapter 19.20 of the Enforcement Guide, the FCA also has the power under the Payment Services Regulations 2017 (PSRs) to impose sanctions for breaches of the PSRs, which includes (but is not limited to) public censure, financial penalties, and the ability to retract or impose restrictions upon, the regulated activities that a firm can undertake.

Child Care Vouchers

Tracy Brabin: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people have joined a childcare voucher scheme in each of the last six months.

Elizabeth Truss: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not hold this information. Childcare vouchers provided by employers are normally exempt from tax and National Insurance contributions. Therefore, employers are not required to report details to HMRC unless they provide more than the exempt amount to their employees.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Gaming Machines

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the technological changes bookmakers would need to undertake to ensure that maximum stakes on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals are to be reduced from £100 to £2.

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has undertaken an impact assessment of legislative proposals to limit maximum stakes on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals to £2 on (a) customers and (b) the wider community.

Tracey Crouch: As the Government's response to the Consultation on proposals for changes to Gaming Machines and Social Responsibility Measures set out on 17th May, a key priority for implementation will be engaging with the gambling industry to ensure that there is an appropriate lead-in period to enable technological changes needed for the reduction in maximum stake on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals to be completed.​Alongside the response to the consultation, the Government also published an Impact Assessment (IA) which set out the costs and benefits associated with this policy. The IA can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/consultation-on-proposals-for-changes-to-gaming-machines-and-social-responsibility-measures

Trinity Mirror

Sir Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many of the 150 journalistic posts paid for by the BBC though the local democracy reporter's service have been awarded to Trinity Mirror Group.

Margot James: As the scheme is administered and funded by the BBC and not DCMS, we do not hold operational data on this scheme. However, according to the BBC Local Democracy Reporters official website, 23 contracts have been awarded to Trinity Mirror, which represents 63 journalists..

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Policy

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what the main policy priority is for his Department for 2018; and if he will make a statement.

Margot James: DCMS published an updated Single Departmental Plan on 23 May 2018. This sets out the department’s main policy objectives and how it will achieve them. Single Departmental Plans are revised annually to reflect new priorities or changes in responsibilities.

EU Grants and Loans

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of public monies received by the (a) community and (b) voluntary sector came from the EU.

Tracey Crouch: Government is continuing to assess the impact of leaving the EU on the voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector, including around funding. The National Council for Voluntary Organisations estimate that in 2014/15 the UK voluntary sector received between £350-450 million of EU funding. Estimates for 2016 are not yet available. There are a wide range of EU funds that community and voluntary sector organisations access. Government is actively listening to the views of community and voluntary sector organisations as we develop successor funding schemes to EU programmes

Arts and Culture

Giles Watling: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent steps his Department has taken to promote UK arts and culture.

Michael Ellis: The arts help individuals and communities by bringing people together, encouraging creativity and removing social barriers. This government is committed to supporting and promoting our world class arts and culture to ensure that everyone can engage and participate in them, make places better for people to live,work and visit, and boost the economy. Government support for arts and culture is primarily provided via the Arts Council England. Government also promotes art and culture through direct support such as the recently launched £20 million Cultural Development Fund, which aims to support towns and cities to grow their local economy through investment in arts, heritage and the creative industries; and the Great Exhibition of the North, a three month event that will will celebrate the great art, culture and design of the North of England, which government has invested over £6 million in.

Museum of Orange Heritage

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions his Department has had with Tourism NI on promoting the Orange Museum on a UK-wide scale to help inform popular understanding of the 12 and 13 July celebrations in Northern Ireland.

Michael Ellis: As tourism and culture responsibilities are devolved issues, we have had no such discussions.

Sports: Disability

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what funding he has made available for disabled (a) rugby, (b) basketball and (c) other sports to help them attain international recognition and assist in their hosting international matches.

Tracey Crouch: UK Sport, an Arm's Length Body of DCMS, works with National Governing Bodies (NGBs) and other partners to help them build strong and positive relationships with their respective International Federations (IFs) and other national and international sporting bodies. To do this, investment is prioritised to support International Relations strategies for those sports that receive UK Sport World Class Programme funding and/or have an agreed Major Events hosting target. UK Sport also provides limited investment to those sports which fall just outside of its World Class Programme funding. These include fencing, badminton, goalball, weightlifting and wheelchair rugby. As a result, GB Wheelchair Rugby are in receipt of UK Sport investment to support their International Relations strategy over the course of the Tokyo cycle (2017-21). This investment amounts to up to £50,000 over the four years. Since the London 2012 Games, a total of £1.5m in grant awards were made by UK Sport into the successful delivery of 16 non-able bodied sports events between 2013 and 2017. Of this, £340,000 was invested into the European Wheelchair Basketball Championships and £57,000 into the BT World Wheelchair Rugby Challenge which both took place in 2015. This year, the UK will be hosting the World Boccia Championships in Liverpool and £390,000 is being invested by UK Sport into that event. Next year, the UK will be hosting the World Wheelchair Curling Championships in Stirling and £56,000 is being invested by UK Sport into that event. The UK is also currently bidding to host the Para Cycling C1 International event in Manchester in January next year.

Voluntary Work

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when his Department plans to publish its response to the civil society strategy consultation, which closed on 22 May 2018.

Tracey Crouch: The engagement exercise for the Civil Society Strategy closed on Tuesday 22 May 2018. We are grateful to all that took part. We are now busy drafting the Civil Society Strategy in collaboration with departments across government and are aiming to publish later this Summer.

Broadcasting

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to create incentives for broadcasters to stay in the UK.

Margot James: The United Kingdom is an important broadcasting hub due to its favourable regulatory and economic environment, access to top talent, and cultural factors, such as language. Leaving the EU will not change this. As set out by the Prime Minister’s Mansion House Speech, we are seeking to strike a bespoke deal with the EU which would allow for continued cross-border broadcasting post EU Exit. This would enable international broadcasting businesses to maintain their UK base. However, a responsible government should prepare for all potential outcomes, and so we continue to work to ensure a smooth exit from the EU in all eventualities.

Viacom International Media Networks and Viceland

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has made an assessment the efficacy of the decision by (a) Viacom International Media Networks and (b) Viceland to move their broadcast licenses outside of the UK.

Margot James: We understand the importance of broadcast licensing arrangements for the sector. However, it is not for the Government to assess the efficacy of business decisions, which are guided by a multitude of factors.

Sports: Young People

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to work with partners to ensure that young people have access to affordable sports facilities in their local area.

Tracey Crouch: Government's Sporting Future strategy, published in December 2015, emphasised the importance of all young people, regardless of background or ability, being healthy, active and having a good experience of sport and physical activity. It also highlighted the significant role that facilities play in encouraging people of all ages and backgrounds to get more active. Sport England's Strategic Facilities Fund is making up to £40m of National Lottery funding available over 2017-21 to invest in strategic, solicited facilities projects that support and encourage people, including young people, to get active. Since 2016, the Strategic Facilities Fund has invested £27.5 million to support the construction of 23 new state of the art health and leisure facilities across England. Sport England's Community Asset Fund is making up to £15m available per year over 2017-21 to support communities to improve and invest in the spaces in their communities that will support people to get more active, including children and young people.

Northern Ireland Office

Northern Ireland Assembly: Members

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with reference to the Advice to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Members of the Northern Ireland Assembly Salaries, Expenses and Allowances from Trevor Reaney, published on  20 December 2017, for what reasons she has not implemented the recommendations in that advice, and if she will make a statement.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has made clear that she is carefully considering all the details and will set out the next steps on this matter in due course.

Women and Equalities

Government Equalities Office: Policy

Philip Davies: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what the main policy priority is for her Department for 2018; and if she will make a statement.

Victoria Atkins: The Government Equalities Office’s job is to champion equality and to work with people inside and outside government to help make Britain a place where everyone can succeed without facing discrimination. The GEO leads work on policy relating to women, sexual orientation and transgender equality, and has responsibility for a range of equalities legislation.All Government departments publish single departmental plans, which for the first time have also included equalities objectives. Due to the ministerial change shortly before these were published, GEO has not produced a plan.The Secretary of State is considering her priorities for this role and will set these out in due course.

BBC: Equal Pay

Stella Creasy: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, pursuant to the Answer of 12 April to Question 134192 on Equal Pay: BBC, whether she has met with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport to discuss the treatment of women at the BBC.

Victoria Atkins: This is an important issue that we need to get right, both for licence-payers and for the women who work at the BBC. The Minister for Digital and the Creative industries and I are due to meet the BBC Director who is leading on women’s progression on behalf of the organisation in July to discuss this issue.

Females: Equality

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what form of technical capacity the Government has provided to each of its Departments  of State to enable them to implement Sustainable Development Goal 5.

Victoria Atkins: This Government is committed to gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls, and we are one of the countries who pushed hard for a standalone Sustainable Development Goal on gender. All Government Departments are required to promote and monitor implementation of the SDGs, and report on this in Single Departmental Plans and Annual Reports and Accounts. I regularly meet with my ministerial colleagues to promote the development of domestic policy that is consistent with our commitments under Sustainable Development Goal 5.